By Philip Haldiman, Independent Newsmedia

A new program being implemented by the Peoria police and fire-medical departments is expected to improve service throughout the city.

Police Chief Roy Minter said Smart 911 will put vital information immediately in the hands of emergency personnel when a resident makes a 911 call.

He said the new and innovative program will enhance communication with Peoria residents during these calls.

“When someone calls 911, seconds count and the more information we can obtain and the faster we can obtain it, we can have a significant impact on our response and the incident,” he said. “But we also realize that calls can be highly stressful for the caller and communications center personnel.”

Residents who sign up for the program can create a private profile that includes details about their family and home that may be needed in the event of a 911 emergency. Resident profiles include household information such as names, dates of birth, photographs, medical details, emergency contacts, as well as vehicles and pets. Profiles can also be edited by the user as needed.

Communications Manager Anjenette Reimer said during 911 calls, residents may be panicked or have a hard time communicating important details. However, she said, if a resident who has a Smart 911 profile calls, their information is automatically displayed for the call-taker. This gives specific, pertinent information about that resident and the resident’s family that can save time in processing the emergency response, she said.

“Consider a situation in which a family member goes missing. Maybe it is a child. Maybe it is an elderly person with Alzheimer’s,” she said. “By including photos of family members as part of your profile, once you have that call to report, 911 can have access to all that information and then share it with  patrol officers on duty.”

Mr. Minter said Peoria is the first city in the West Valley to implement Smart 911. Tempe and Paradise Valley have already implemented the program.

In 2016, Michigan launched a statewide initiative to make Smart 911 available to all residents, he said.

“Like Michigan, we expect Smart 911 to eventually spread throughout state of Arizona,” Mr. Minter said.

Smart 911

The Peoria Police Department will soon be launching Smart 911, an online program expected to enhance communication with Peoria residents during emergency calls. For more information call 623-773-8311.