Texting for help.

• Position: STATELINE - Brief article

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A 911 dispatch center in Waterloo, Iowa, has become the first in the country to allow emergency callers to seek help by texting. The hope is that this will help hearing-impaired callers, young people and those in areas with poor reception. There also have been some cases around the country of kidnap victims summoning help by surreptitiously texting friends or relatives, who then called 911, according to National Public Radio. With direct texting to 911, they should be able to get...