With summer holidays just around the corner, ACT Policing and the ACT Emergency Services Agency have re-released an updated version of the ’emergency+’ app.
“You never know where and when you may need to call emergency triple zero so the emergency+ app helps ACT Policing and the ACT Emergency Services Agency (ESA) find where you are,” ACT Policing said in a statement yesterday.
Emergency+ is an app that uses GPS functionality built into smart phones to help a user provide their location to emergency operators. The app can be used Australia wide and displays the user’s GPS coordinates and street address, enabling users to give the emergency operator their exact location.
A new feature of the Emergency+ app is that it now incorporates the what3words service. What3words generates three words that correlate to a unique three-metre-square location anywhere in the world.
In the new version of the Emergency+ app, this information appears as three words on the user’s phone. A user can say those three words to an emergency operator to describe their precise location.
Users can call supporting agencies from within the app, and if a user is unsure of which service to call, the app provides details of the services provided and links to their websites.
ACT Policing Operations Detective Acting Superintendent Stephen Ladd said location accuracy was critical information for first responders to arrive at an incident in a timely manner.
“In an emergency seconds count, and with this app someone can confirm their exact location quickly and accurately, using just three words,” Det A/Supt Ladd said.
“This app is particularly useful for responding to jobs where a building may have a hard to find entry, the caller is in an unfamiliar place with no identifiable landmarks or in an area without easy to read street addresses. The caller can provide the emergency operator the three words displayed on the phone, helping first responders to arrive at the job quicker.”
ACT Emergency Services Agency Commissioner, Georgeina Whelan said that the app was a valuable tool that would assist the residents of the ACT in all types of emergencies.
“From lost bush walkers to those impacted by floods or fires, especially for those who like to explore our region, the emergency+ app will help to assist all first responders to get help to you as faster.”
The Emergency+ and What3Words apps can be downloaded from the Apple and Google Play app stores for free.
