News and Articles

Sign Up for Smart 9-1-1- Today »

Public safety officials in Santa Fe County have introduced a new emergency services enhancement that could help save lives, Smart911. Smart911 is a free service that allows individuals to create a Safety Profile for their household. The profile can include any information residents may want 9-1-1 call takers and first responders to have in the event of an emergency. If 9-1-1 is dialed, their Safety Profile will immediately display on the call taker’s screen saving critical seconds and even minutes in response to the emergency.

“The Smart911 platform saves critical time in an emergency when seconds can be the difference between life and death,” said Pablo Sedillo III, Public Safety Director. “The additional information provided in a Smart911 Safety Profile enables us to know exactly where we are going and what assistance is necessary. Those details can help us respond faster and more efficiently.”

Smart911 allows individuals to create a Safety Profile for their household and will only display if 9-1-1 is dialed. When a citizen makes an emergency call, their Safety Profile is automatically displayed to the 9-1-1 call taker, allowing them to send the correct response teams to the location with the accurate information. Responders can now be aware of many details they would not have known previously. Fire crews can arrive at a house fire knowing how many people live in the home and the location of bedrooms. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) can be advised of allergies or specific medical conditions and police can have the photo of a missing child in seconds rather than minutes or hours.

“Smart911 fills in the gaps that occur in 9-1-1 calls from mobile phones,” said Ken Martinez, Regional Emergency Communications Center (RECC) Director. “Mobile phones provide very little information to the 9-1-1 call taker. We aren’t able to see an exact location. With Smart911, we can utilize additional information in the Safety Profile to locate the caller and send help as soon as possible.”

With Smart911, citizens can link both home and work addresses to mobile phones, which can be passed on to responders in the field for a more detailed, rapid response. Additional information including pets in the home, vehicle details in the event of an accident, or emergency contacts can be included in a Safety Profile. All information is optional and the citizen has the ability to decide what details they would like to provide.

Citizens are encouraged to create their Safety Profile with Smart911 today to have their information immediately available to 9-1-1 and to receive emergency notifications. Smart911 is private and secure, is only used for emergency responses, and only made available to the 9-1-1 system in the event of an emergency call.

For more information, please contact the Regional Emergency Communications (RECC) non-emergency line at (505) 428-3720 or visit www.smart911.com.