Emergency 000 calls from mobiles easier to locate

Mobile phones now account for the vast majority of calls to the Triple Zero (000) network. Thanks to recent Telstra carrier upgrades, Triple Zero (000) calls from mobiles will now be easier to locate due to embedded location information in the call.

This is good news for boaters and other users of the great outdoors. As well as making emergency calls on VHF Channel 16 and 27 Meg Channel 88 marine radios — more on
Marine Radio Boating Safety and Operations here — boaters in emergency situations are encouraged to call 000 these days.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has announced that caller location can now be narrowed down to a radius of 50 metres, although the degree of accuracy is influenced by the number of base stations within a given handset’s vicinity.

Of course, accuracy is greater in built-up and more urban areas where the majority of calls originate and less accurate but still useful where base station deployment is sparse, more likely in rural or remote areas. At worst, accuracy in remote areas can be 90km.

But now calls to Triple Zero (000) from mobile phones will contain improved location information, following upgrades to the Triple Zero (000) service. Of the 8.3 million calls made to Triple Zero (000) in 2014-15, 66.9 per cent or 5.6 million were from mobile phones.

Unlike fixed landline phones, emergency calls from mobile phones have not previously been able to automatically give emergency services potentially helpful information about the caller’s location.

The Triple Zero (000) emergency call service uses an operator-assisted telephone service which connects callers to police, fire or ambulance in life threatening or time critical situations. Location information will now be included automatically with your mobile call.

Callers will still be asked for information about the location of the emergency to assist in transferring the call to the appropriate state or territory emergency service organisation co-ordination centre for it to dispatch the police, fire or ambulance closest to the caller in the shortest possible time.

Australia’s Triple Zero Awareness Working Group released a mobile smart phone app called Emergency + in December 2013 for iOS and Android and recent Windows handsets to take advantage of handset GPS capability.

The Emergency + app shows users GPS coordinates which can then be verbally passed on to emergency services. Well worth downloading and more info at Emergency Smartphone App.