Residents of Tazewell County can now text Tazewell’s 911 Center

TAZEWELL, VA (WOAY) – It’s not always easy talking on the phone, especially during an emergency. Text messages are one of the primary ways people communicate today.

“It seems to be pretty effective if you’re in a situation where you are not able to call like a domestic situation and you don’t want the person to know where you are it helps out a lot,” said 911 Dispatcher Joshua Stiltner.

In some areas, a phone call may not go through but a text message will.

“We have certain areas in the county that obvious is limited in cell service. You can get a text out, but can’t get a call through so it’s helpful for law enforcement if we can have that conversation with a person if they don’t have that cell service they can text and get out that essential information,” said Lieutenant Ron Holt.

911 Dispatcher Joshua Stiltner says speaking directly to a 911 dispatcher is always the best and fastest way to get help in an emergency.

 

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