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Posted: July 26, 2005
A British initiative to locate next of kin using cell phone address menus in
emergencies is gaining global support, including an endorsement from the
Plano Fire Department. In wake of the recent London bombings, “ICE,” an
acronym for “in case of emergency,” is suddenly turning into a standard
phone address item on millions of cell phones.
The brainchild of Britain’s East Anglian Ambulance Service, the system was
inaugurated in Britain in May of this year. Paramedics had found they were
increasingly using persons’ cell phones as identification when injured
persons could not communicate. They determined a uniform approach to
searching cell phones for an emergency contact would make things easier for
everyone. Hence, the birth of ICE.
With the use of ICE gaining attention after the London bombings, the idea is
rapidly escalating, with the Plano Fire Department joining in with support,
encouraging persons to use the system.
Cell users simply add “ICE” in their mobile address book, followed by the
name and number of the person(s) they would contact in an emergency.
It’s fast and simple. In your mobile phone address book simply type the
acronym “ICE” followed by the contact name and their number (for example,
ICE – Harrison Ford, 333-222-1111.) You can prioritize your contacts by
listing them as ICE1, ICE2, etc. Be sure you tell your ICE contact that you
have nominated them to be an emergency contact for you.
A recent email by hoaxers suggests that ICE is a type of telephone virus
that accesses your address book and drains phones of air credit time. East
Anglian Ambulance Service is the first to deny this hoax with spokesman Matt
Ware stating, “whoever began this email chain is obviously a malicious
person with way too much time on their hands.”
The Plano Fire Department also debunks the virus hoax, is backing the ICE
initiative and will be educating personnel on its use. “Emergency care will
continue to be our first priority,” said Peggy Harrell, Plano Fire
Department Fire Safety Education Coordinator, “but ICE is an added resource
our emergency responders and law enforcement can use to contact a patient’s
next of kin or emergency contact in cases where the patient may be
unconscious or unable to communicate.”
Besides the convenience to users themselves, with an estimated 80% of the
population now using cell phones, there is no simpler way of letting
emergency services locate an emergency contact after aid has been rendered.
So popular is the concept a move is already underway to make this a standard
feature in the manufacture of cell phones.
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