MEMA introduces counties to better 911 smart-phone information at no cost

From the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency:

County Emergency Management directors and 911 directors got an in-person introduction to RapidSOS at the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency on Tuesday.

RapidSOS is an emergency technology company that helps 9-1-1 dispatchers access information that can expedite response and better inform the allocation of appropriate resources. The information available through RapidSOS includes accurate, real-time caller location for 9-1-1 calls from iPhones (iOS 12+) and Android phones (4.0+). It also provides situational and incident-specific information from apps like Uber, wearables, health profiles and connected homes at no cost to counties.

“We are thrilled that the State of Mississippi is encouraging all of its 9-1-1 centers to use RapidSOS for their emergency response operations,” said Tom Guthrie, vice president of Public Safety Operations for RapidSOS in a statement. “We are proud to work alongside Mississippi’s first responders, and to provide them with actionable data that will undoubtedly lead to more lives saved and more efficient incident response.”

Currently, 11 Mississippi counties have signed up to use RapidSOS.

“As the 911 coordinator for the State of Mississippi, we encourage all county EMA and 911 directors to use this software. Its expanded use of GIS (geographic information systems) data has the ability to pinpoint a person’s location and has the potential to save the lives of numerous Mississippians,” said MEMA Director Greg Michel.

Agencies who don’t yet have access to RapidSOS can sign up at www.rapidsosportal.com.