Full Notification

Van Buren Township Police Department is proud to announce that our 911 dispatch center is now part of the "Text-to-911" system. We want to stress that the best way to contact 911 will continue to be via voice communication whenever possible, but during times that it is not text-to-911 is now an option. The system's slogan is "Call if you can, text if you can't"

What is Text-to-911?

Text-to-911 is an important new service that offers citizens the ability to send text messages to local 911 call centers during an emergency.

What are the benefits of text-to-911?

This service benefits those involved in incidents where verbal communication is limited, or sometimes not an option at all. For example, text-to-911 will be very useful for the approximate 34 million Americans who are hard of hearing, deaf, or speech impaired. Text-to-911 could also help in situations of domestic vio lence, kidnapping and other situations where victims need a way to call for help without tipping off a criminal during the commission of a crime.

What is important for Wayne County residents to understand about text-to-911?

Anyone who is within the borders of the 18 Conference of Western Wayne (CWW) communities (a list of which can be found through this link: http://www.c-w-w.org/communities/) can use the service, as long as they have a texting plan with one of the four major carriers: AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile or Verizon. The service is activated by sending an SMS text on a mobile phone to the number "911". That text message will be routed to the nearest CWW911 dispatch center for action.

At the current time, the rest of Wayne County outside of the CWW area does not have the text-to-911 service, although some neighboring counties such as Oakland and Macomb have fully implemented the text-to-911 system. If the texter is in an area that does n o t support text-to-911, they will receive a "bounce-back" message informing them 911 in not available via text.

How to text in an emergency:

• Enter the numbers "911" in the "to" field;
• The first text message to 911 should be brief and contain the location of the emergency and type of help needed;
• Push the send button;
• Be prepared to answer questions and follow instructions from the 911 call taker;
• Text in simple words - DO NOT USE ABBREVIATIONS;
• Keep text messaged brief and concise.

Below are a few things to know if you need to use text-to-911:

• Text location information is not equal to current location technology. Be prepared to give your location.
• As with all text messages, 911 messages can take longer to receive, can get out of order or may not be received at all.
• Text-to-911 is not available if you are roaming.
• A text data plan is required to use text- t o-911.
• If text-to-911 is not available in your area or is temporarily unavailable, you will receive a message indication that texting 911 is not available and to contact 911 by other means.
• Photos and videos cannot be sent to 911 at this time.
• Text-to-911 cannot include more than one person (group texting). Do not send your emergency text to anyone other than 911.

Remember the slogan... "CALL IF YOU CAN, TEXT IF YOU CAN'T"