Texting 911 for help in an emergency in New York City could be as much as two years away, reports Jennifer Fermino in the New York Daily News
The recent mass shooting in Orlando has raised questions about texting 911 services, as some victims texted relatives during the attack.
New York’s current 911 reporting system uses copper wire before routing callers to a digital system. Upgrades are in progress in a program called Next Generation 911,which would give 911 callers the ability to text and to send photos and videos of a crime scene or emergency to dispatchers, but progress is slow.
Some small towns and counties with less complicated dispatching systems than New York City’s already have 911 texting systems in place.
