Wanna Text 911? It May Be Coming To East Texas.

It's usually so much easier to text someone rather than pick up the phone and call.

To your sweetie: "Could you grab some wine on the way home?" It takes a minute when actually dialing and calling might take five, because your spouse things of a hundred other things to tell you while you're on the phone. And hopefully the reply is a simple, "Yep! ;-)"

What about emergencies? Is texting the quickest way to 911?

It may be coming to East Texas.

There are ten counties in Texas that have the 911 texting capability right now, and emergency planners right now are weighing the pros and cons of adding it in Smith and other East Texas counties. It seems like a quick and easy way to send a distress signal, but what if there are network delays and dispatchers don't get the text for an hour or two? And how would a dispatcher be able to tell if it's a prank or false alarm?

Smith County is upgrading systems now that could make 911 texting possible by the end of the year. There is a lot to work out in the meantime.

For now we'll reserve texting for friends, sig others, and family. But we have a feeling we'll be texting emergencies soon.