Arlington, TX, April 19, 2021 – North Texas citizens dialing 9-1-1 may soon begin receiving text messages from the 9-1-1 telecommunicator with a link to pinpoint their location. This feature is one of the tools included with a new dispatch map that has been implemented throughout the North Central Texas Emergency Communications District’s 13-county region.   

The new map provides GIS-based data to 9-1-1 telecommunicators. The map features tools like enhanced location, which sends a link to mobile devices that callers can click to send their enhanced location to the telecommunicator.  The map also includes a 9-1-1 chat feature that translates to over 70 languages, and is integrated with applications like What3Words, which pinpoints the location of a mobile device within three meters, and Waze to provide traffic data. 

“Our region is fairly rural, which sometimes makes identifying an exact location of a caller difficult,” said GIS Manager Rodger Mann. “The tools provided by this new map gives 9-1-1 telecommunicators another way to better identify a caller’s location, which can save lives by cutting down on response times.” 

The map is available to over 40 Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs), or 9-1-1 call centers, in 13 North Texas counties surrounding the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. This area serves about 1.7 million citizens. 

View the factsheet for these new features.

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About the North Central Texas Emergency Communications District (NCT9-1-1)  

The North Central Texas Emergency Communications District (NCT9-1-1) is responsible for 40 plus Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) in the 13 counties surrounding the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. The district supports these PSAPs through maintaining and upgrading 9-1-1 equipment, providing up-to-date mapping information, training 9-1-1 telecommunicators, educating the public on the proper use of 9-1-1, and monitoring PSAP functionality and compliances. NCT9-1-1 serves a population of 1.7 million and 10,000+ square miles.