Chicago residents can now send pictures and photos from their cell phones when contacting 911. We’re the first city in the country to offer the service. The full article is here: http://goo.gl/S98YN
It’s not the most Gov 2.0 thing that’s ever been done, but it is a cool use of mobile technology. I think we’ll be seeing more from Chicago in terms of Gov 2.0 given everything that the transition team is doing in terms of getting citizen input. Yesterday the Government Budget and Reinvention Committee met at Google’s Chicago office. Sign of things to come perhaps?
*cough* #govmaddness votes *cough* *cough*
I think this is a pretty neat concept, but I think this line from that full report is key:
“Santiago is warning Chicagoans not to jeopardize themselves by trying to take pictures of shootings in progress or other violence. A call or text message works just as well in those situations, he said.”
Considering 911 is mostly for emergencies, it would seem that in most emergency situations, fiddling with picture sending or even taking a picture could cause even more issues. But again, sounds pretty cool.
Very interesting. I wonder how they will use additional information? There are many potential benefits for additional intelligence but requiring quick analysis.