Cal Fire CZU adds text 911 option

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, Calif. (KION) Cal Fire CZU announced that it has a new option for people in San Mateo and Santa Cruz Counties to contact them during an emergency.

The agency now accepts 911 text messages. The service can be used when it is not safe to make a voice call, if a person has a hearing or speech impairment, if there is a medical emergency that leaves a person unable to speak or if there is poor cellular service that makes placing a call difficult.

Only SMS text messages are accepted through the service, so users are asked to not send videos, photos or MMS messages.

Cal Fire's Text to 911 project was completed with help from the state Office of Emergency Services' 911 Emergency Communications Branch, and initial funding for the infrastructure was provided by that branch.