Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office launches Smart911 to improve emergency response

Hennepin County residents, employees and travelers can now sign up for Smart911, a free service the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) says has been proven to save lives in locations that use the system.

Smart911 allows residents to create a safety profile for their household that will be displayed to 911 call takers so responders are better prepared during emergencies, HCSO says.

“The additional details will help first responders act faster and more efficiently in situations where every second matters,” an HCSO representative said in a statement Wednesday.

Not only can people create household profiles, they can link their home and work addresses to cell phone numbers so responders can use that information even if the call taker is unable to obtain a location from the caller.

“The benefits of this information on a 9-1-1 call from a cell phone are immeasurable. Cell phones do not provide an address to the 9-1-1 call taker and those are 76% of our 9-1-1 calls,” the statement said.

Effective Wednesday, Aug. 24, all communities served by HCSO 911 and dispatch can use Smart911. HCSO also encourages those who work or travel in Hennepin County to sign up.

HCSO says user information will only be available during emergency 911 calls. Users can opt out of providing any details they do not want to share.

People can visit www.smart911.com or download an app for iOS and Google devices to get started.