Oklahoma Police Chief Says E-911 ‘Will Save Lives’
Cass Rains of Oklahoma's Enid News and Eagle reports that city police chief Rick West says enhanced 911 service will make the county markedly safer.
West is supporting a state initiative that would add a 50-cent monthly fee to cell phone bills. The revenue would go towards helping 911 call centers improve their technology so they could receive more information about wireless 911 callers, including the caller's name and location.
"I can't emphasize enough the importance the passage of the fee is," West says. "A lot of the public doesn't understand, when they call from a cell phone we don't know where you're at."
The fee requires the support of the state's voters for passage, and will be on the oklahoma ballot on November 7th. "Fifty cents a month or $6 a year isn't that much to pay for the service you'd be getting," West said. "It will save lives."