Texting 9-1-1 Now Available For Several Towns In Tulsa Area

People in Tulsa and several nearby towns can now text 9-1-1 during emergencies.

This can help victims who may not be able to speak because they are in a domestic situation, hiding from a burglar, or in an active shooter situation. 

It'll also be great for people who are deaf and hard of hearing.

Law enforcement says it's still best to call if you are able to, but this is now a great option they believe will save lives.

The 911 center has been testing the texting 911 service for a couple of months, and it's already paid off, like at Hale Middle School in December when police say a student brought an airsoft gun to school.

"We were actually summoned through a student texting 911 and getting us to respond to that," said Tulsa Police Chief Wendell Franklin. 

Tulsa County Sheriff Vic Regalado says this is a great way to help crime victims who aren't able to call for help for whatever reason.

"If you picture yourself in a mall, and God forbid that happens again, and you can't talk, you can get on the text and tell us that you're hiding in the foot locker on the second floor of the mall, and this is what the suspect is dressed in," he said.

The new texting option will also help people who are deaf or who have a tough time speaking.

Wendi Fralick with the Tulsa Center for People with Physical Challenges shared a story about how she has called 911 on someone's behalf, and now they will be able to text. 

"This will allow him to be able to contact the police himself. This is about making the police more accessible to everyone," she said.

The texting option will be available for smaller departments like Jenks and Osage County Sheriff's Office.

That's great for parts of the county where service is spotty.

"A lot of times, text messages will get out, but phone calls won't, and so that's a huge benefit for us because we have real-time information we can act on and get to a location quickly," said Osage County Undersheriff Gary Upton.

Police say they will have your number and your GPS coordinates, so making a false 911 text will have the same repercussions as a false call.

People just need to text the number 911, but they can't use any emojis or send pictures.

The texting service is available in Bixby, Broken Arrow, Collinsville, Glenpool, Jenks, Owasso, Sand Springs, Sapulpa, Skiatook and Tulsa. It's also available in Tulsa, Osage and Rogers Counties.