Tempe first Ariz. city to use personalized 911 program

Tempe is the first city in Arizona to join Smart911, a program that lets citizens create a "Safety Profile" that helps dispatchers fill in the gaps created when someone makes a 911 call using a cell phone.

The Tempe Police Department is teaming up with the Tempe Fire Department to educate people about the program and encourage them to sign up.

The partnership between Tempe and Smart911 became active and available to citizens on Monday.

When someone calls 911, the call center that answers receives very limited information, depending on the type of phone the caller is using.

Cell phones, which account for 80 percent of incoming calls, only give 911 dispatchers the phone number and approximate location of the call, said Patrick Cutts, a spokesman for Tempe police.

With Smart911, individuals can create their own "Safety Profile." The profile is a set of information about an individual or household that can include details about medical conditions, required medications, pets and emergency contacts, to name a few.

The profile also allows users to upload pictures of the members of a household in case a missing person alert needs to go out, such as an Amber Alert or Silver Alert.

Cutts said profile information must be updated or confirmed at least every six months to ensure that police and firefighters have the most current information.

When someone calls 911 from a phone number registered with their Safety Profile, the system recognizes the number and automatically displays profile information on the screen of the dispatcher who answers the call.

"It's amazing someone didn't think of this earlier," Cutts said.

Anyone can create a profile with Smart911, regardless of the city they live in, but their profile will only be accessible to 911 call centers in cities that pay for the service.

As of right now, Tempe is the only Arizona city to use the Smart911 service, so an emergency dispatch center in Phoenix, for example, would not be able to access your profile, Cutts said.

A Tempe Fire Department spokeswoman is encouraging people to sign up for the service even if they do not live or work in Tempe.

"You never know where you're going to be when an emergency occurs," Deputy Chief Andrea Glass said.

For those who are worried about privacy, it is important to note that Smart911 does not operate like a typical search engine or database, Cutts said. Information is only available when a person calls 911. Even then, it is only available for 45 minutes.

Users' personal information is protected from hackers using the same type of technology that many banks use, Cutts said.

For more information or to sign up for the program, go to tempe.gov.