New system will make it easier to track emergency cell phone calls

It’ll soon be easier for emergency personnel to find you when you make a 9-1-1 call from your cell phone. State Emergency Management Division spokesman John Benson says there’s currently no way to trace emergency cell phone calls.Those emergency calls are now answered by the Iowa State Patrol and the Patrol must then figure out where to send help. Benson says the new system will change that.It will send your 9-1-1 call to the closest dispatcher based on the relay tower being used by your phone. It will also provide your cell phone number to the dispatcher. The new system will be completed in November or December. Benson says the system will eventually upgrade to be able to give police your location within 140 feet of where you’re calling.All cell phone companies in the state will be required to be a part of the network. Cell phone customers will be charged 50 cents a month to pay for the new system.