« Closed Captioning – Time to Take Action | Main | NAD Interviewed by CNN about Movie Captioning »
Don’t Throw Away Your TTY!
By advocacy | March 19, 2007
Today’s technology presents our community with many communication choices. We can text message our boss on a cell phone, IM our kids on a PDA (like a Sidekick or Blackberry device), and chat with our moms through video relay. We have communication gizmos and gadgets we can throw in our purse, hang on our belt, or clip to our backpack. We have gotten so used to different and often quicker, clearer modes of communication that some of us only use our TTYs as a doorstop or to remind us of the bad old days of slow typing and garbled messages. Who could blame us for wanting to abandon the TTY when there are so many better ways to stay in touch?
What if there is an emergency? Imagine your house catching fire, an intruder showing up in your kitchen, or your child having a seizure. What are you going to do?
When you call 911 through a regular telephone land line, using a telephone or TTY, your call is automatically connected to your 911 emergency services center – the 911 center that serves your location. Your address and phone number are automatically displayed on the computer screen of the 911 operator, even if you don’t type or say anything. The 911 operator can send emergency services to your location immediately, and call you back if your call is disconnected. No other technology provides your address and phone number automatically to the 911 operator.
NAD President Bobbie Beth Scoggins advises, “The NAD urges all individuals to keep their telephone line and use their TTY first for calling 911 centers. Protect the health and safety of yourself and the people you love. Don’t throw away your TTY!â€
Some relay service providers may be able to connect you to your 911 emergency service center – but this should not be your first choice. A TTY call to your 911 center is still the best and fastest way to reach your 911 center. Going through relay services can cause delays which could mean the difference between life and death.
The fastest and most reliable way to contact emergency services is by dialing 911 through a telephone or TTY hooked up to a regular telephone line; not through a computer, not through the Internet, not through a PDA, not through a videophone, and not through a relay service.
NAD Chief Executive Officer Nancy Bloch notes, “The NAD and others are spearheading efforts to make 911 systems able to receive and respond to other forms of communication, such as through videophones and text. Right now, none of these other forms of communication have the same speed, reliability, or efficiency as a 911 call made through a telephone or TTY using a regular telephone land line.â€
Topics: General |
March 19th, 2007 at 11:57 am
Right now I pay about $20 a month ($240 a year) to keep my phone line, just for this purpose. This is hard for many to pay. In essence, I am paying $20 a month for 911 services when it should be free.
Perhaps the NAD can ask phone companies to provide a discount rate or free 911 phone services for deaf people who are keeping their phone line because of the lack of 911 connection via IP and VRS relay services?
March 19th, 2007 at 12:52 pm
One option people can have is to keep in mind of neighbors. Work out a plan with neighbors to call 911 for them.
I personally do not have a phone line and do not see the need to pay so much a month for emergencies only. In reality, any phone line should technically have access to 911 or relay service direct to 911 regardless if you have a service or not. For example, pretty much all houses and apartments have a phone line, all the jacks should be activated and limited only to 911 calls. This might be the best solution for ALL americans, regardless of economic status.
March 19th, 2007 at 12:53 pm
What about Sorenson’s new 911 feature via its Video Relay Service? Apparently, in conjunction with another company, the 911 emergency provider can then pin-point your address via your IP address. But I agree — it takes a lot less time to call via one’s TTY (assuming it’s not buried in a drawer!) than it would to set up and call using a videocamera. See related blog at:
http://proudgeek.wordpress.com/2007/03/07/sorenson-vrs-now-provides-911-service/
March 19th, 2007 at 6:01 pm
I am sure many of you are not aware about phone line. If you close your account with a phone company, it will be no problem because the line is alive only for 911 - even power line is out. Phone line will be alive. Digital phone will not work. Only push button numbers phone will work. I will use old phone with buttons so I dial 911 then leave it on till police come. TTY will not work because it require power line.
March 19th, 2007 at 9:41 pm
Don’t forget about when the internet is down, then can’t use the videophone or webcam. I have had to use the TTY last week due to a slow connection through video relay service and I was in a hurry to place a call.
March 19th, 2007 at 9:53 pm
I rather keep my ttys. I used the relay service in one of them often for 3 weeks when the internet was down in Dec instead of my Sidekick II pager. I will be getting a new tty tomorrow for free with a voucher I received in the mail from the state after moving here from another state.
March 23rd, 2007 at 6:43 pm
While working for ACDHH several years ago, I was told that it is very important to keep TTY no matter with what other technologies you have to communicate like cell phones, pagers or VP, the TTY on line will be enable 911 operators to verify where your home address from their computers within seconds and that is how emergency reaches you within a few minutes whereas with cell phones and pagers, you have to tell them where you live and time is a matter of life.
March 23rd, 2007 at 8:30 pm
My phone line no longer is hooked up. I just tried a test call to 911 but it didn’t connect. There are phone plans much cheaper than $20/month where you have only basic service, like up to 30 local calls a month for the few dollars that you pay. That seems like a good insurance for emergency purposes, whether for 911 or for when the internet connection is out. Check your telephone service provider for this option.
March 25th, 2007 at 2:54 pm
Agree with people’s comments.
Big problem that I have a teenager daughter. One of two daughter that she have asthma and can be very fatal if we threw our tty machine. I cannot call 911 and think about twice,if I am not able to use tty I can use my sidekick 11.It is very very risk. but I spend alot of cell phone and sidekick11 together cost about 130 dollars per monthly.It is ouch and alot of money for family member use cell for any emgerency.
My former deaf therpist told me to threw tty machine. I fired her and we never go back to see her. because we were arguement that medical office always hung up with TTY relay service and more discrimatnation.
The deaf therpist are act dumb. but she is smart and peabrain!
But otherwise she did not realized my daughter have asthma issues. SAAVVEE TTY machine for Emergency. It is so important to save the tty machine and connect phone. .. We pay for 25 dollars a monthly. it is cute .. Big deal. I know you have to tell 911 that you use cell because they cannot trace of locations and address. but 911 dispatcher will have more information on your address or locations. It is very important to save the TTY machine, I know it is bulk is very hassle. but save your life.
Think about it?
mat
March 30th, 2007 at 4:11 pm
Remembered on October 29th at field house after Gally Rally session was over. Suddenly big noise roar rise from other side among all deafs with their pagers got good news from public relation or Board of Trustee.
Wow! Stronger as good synchronized pager network hit all pagers as same time so deaf people know quickly than hearing people via audio/sound. It happened about 30 seconds thats all.
It must be good for emergency messages.
So I think E911 pending FCC requires the location of pager for emergency incident that helps the local government agents to do next thing….
We see.
Sam