West Virginia has a majority of it’s counties using technology allowing residents to text 911 through the “Next Generation 911” program.
There are fifty-one 911 centers across the state, with four sets of centers being combined of two counties, mainly due to their smaller size. Executive Director of the West Virginia E911 Council Dean Meadows said 26 of the 51 systems in the state have this 911 text feature.
“We’ve had several counties come on board just within the past year,” Meadows said. “It’s really going to be a gamechanger for 911.”
Meadows explained the benefits of texting 911 in certain situations over trying to call.
“If there’s a perpetrator on the scene, and you don’t want them to hear you, you can text,” said Meadows.
He added there are some areas across the state where it’s difficult to get a call out, but you can still get out a text.
Meadows said too that if a center decides to apply these Next Generation upgrades, it wouldn’t be too expensive.
“It’s affordable, it’s not a massive expense, and there are several vendors,” he said.
The state E-911 Council hired Meadows in October of last year. He was formerly the Wyoming County 911 Director.
State lawmakers passed a bill earlier this year creating a commission to review Next Gen 911 and its implementation in the state.