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NYC Opens 911 Hotline To Pictures, Video

Posted by Soulskill on from the oh-the-possibilities dept.

Anti-Globalism brings news that New York City has set up a system to accept pictures and videos for their 911 and non-emergency hotlines. The files can come from cell phones, computers, and PDAs. Quoting: "Tipsters in New York City can now send photos and video ... to report crimes and quality-of-life issues such as potholes, officials announced Tuesday. Depending on the case, the images may be shared widely with the public, with police officers on patrol, individual detectives or other law enforcement agencies, according to city officials. The images may also be used to help in assessing and responding to emergencies."

5 of 60 comments (clear)

  1. Re:911? by spooje · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I think this is a great addition. Just think of the 911 dispatcher being able to send a video of an injured person to a doctor or the EMS unit, allowing the caller to get expert medical advice.

    Also think of Colombine, where police may have a chance to get a look at the suspects or be able to pinpoint their location by ruling out places that they aren't.

    --
    Tea and kung-fu. Life is good. Rising Phoenix
  2. Re:911? by nospam007 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    >I think this is a great addition. Just think of the 911 dispatcher being able to send a video of an injured person to a doctor or the EMS unit, allowing the caller to get expert medical advice.

    But first they have to find it amongst the thousands of pictures of wrongly parked cars the overzealous 'photo-sheriffs' send in every hour.

  3. Don't need a picture by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Hello, 911? It's Quagmire. Yeah, it's caught in the window this time.

  4. Re:So let me see.... by zeptobyte · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Realize that this is an option, not a requirement. It's not as if you'll call 911 and they'll demand that you provide photos or video. But if it's relevant to the situation, and you did managed to get a picture (for instance, as someone said above, taking pictures of a fire), they are now equipped to receive that picture. Or say you just witnessed a robbery in progress and you got a picture of the getaway car as it was leaving, you can now send that to them. And of course this is also available for non-emergency lines, where it will probably see more use as the situations are not time-critical.

  5. Re:So let me see.... by antifoidulus · · Score: 4, Funny

    Yeah, it would kind of suck if the last words you heard on this planet were "pics or it didn't happen"....

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    Monstar L