A total of 77 local Los Angeles County law enforcement agencies and fire agencies dispatchers will be equipped to receive and respond to mobile phone SMS Text-to-9-1-1 messages, according to an announcement from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

The new service is an effort to assist the hearing and speech impaired as well as those who are in a situation where it is too dangerous to dial 9-1-1. The LASD collaborated with the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, the Los Angeles Police Department, and California Highway Patrol’s Southern Division to make the announcement Friday.

“Call if you can — text if you can’t’’ is an important slogan developed by the Federal Communications Commission as the latest technology is introduced in California.

The SMS Text-to-9-1-1 service will be available for use by the deaf, hard-of-hearing, or speech impaired citizens, and in any situation where it would be too dangerous to make a voice call to 9-1-1.

In order for anyone to make the text call to 9-1-1, all cellular phones must have a text messaging plan.

“It is great to see technology allowing our Law Enforcement Agencies to work together in providing the public with another option of communication when they need it,” said Commander Bill I. Song of the Sheriff’s Department. “Please remember to ‘Call if you can, and text if you can’t.'”

Josh Rubenstein, LAPD public information officer, said: “The ability to text to 9-1-1 is so significant and so impactful that you get the idea of how important this technology is.”

Some of the benefits to consumers are cases where the caller cannot communicate verbally. For example, when a caller has been the victim of a domestic violence situation and they are hiding somewhere inside the house from the suspect, they will have the ability to just text 9-1-1 and type the information needed by the emergency dispatcher.

All Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Stations will have the ability to receive 9-1-1 text messages.

In addition, the following is a list of local Los Angeles County law enforcement agencies that are also currently equipped to receive Text-to-9-1-1:

* Alhambra Police Department
* Arcadia Police Department
* Azusa Police Department
* Baldwin Park Police Department
* Beverly Hills Police Department
* Burbank Police Department
* California Highway Patrol
* California Polytechnic University Campus Police
* California State Long Beach Campus Police
* California State University Campus Police
* California State University Los Angeles Campus Police
* California State University Northridge Campus Police
* Cerritos College Police Department
* Claremont Police Department
* Covina Police Department
* Downey Fire Department
* Downey Police Department
* El Camino College Police Department
* El Monte Police Department
* Glendale Police Department
* Glendora Police Department
* Huntington Park Police Department
* Inglewood Police Department
* Irwindale Police Department
* La Verne Police Department
* Long Beach Fire Department
* Long Beach Police Department
* Los Angeles City Fire Department
* Los Angeles County Fire Department
* Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department
* Los Angeles Police Department
* Monrovia Police Department
* Montebello Police Department
* Monterey Park Police Department
* Palo Verdes Estates Police Department
* Pasadena Police Department
* Pomona Police Department
* Redondo Beach Police Department
* San Fernando Police Department
* San Gabriel Police Department
* San Marino Police Department
* Santa Monica Police Department
* Sierra Madre Police Department
* Signal Hill Police Department
* South Bay Regional Police Department
* South Gate Police Department
* South Pasadena Police Department
* Torrance Police Department
* University of Southern California Police Department
* Verdugo Police Department
* Vernon Police Department
* West Covina Police Department
* Whittier Police Department

For additional information and a live stream viewing regarding the Text-to-9-1-1 press conference, click here or contact the Cal OES Office of Public and Media Relations at 916-800-3943.