BRAMPTON: Brampton Fire and Emergency Services has partnered with what3words, a free mobile app for iOS and Android that has divided the world into 3m squares, each with a unique 3 word address.
The City of Brampton is a Healthy and Safe City dedicated to the wellbeing of its community.
what3words will allow Brampton Fire and Emergency Services to respond to emergency calls with more precise location identification, enabling quicker dispatch to the incident site, which is crucial in emergencies. It supports lifesaving services by helping to find people who are lost or in need of support and describing exactly where help is needed in an emergency.
What is what3words? what3words is a really simple way to talk about location. It has divided the world into 3m squares, each with a unique 3 word address. It means that everyone, everywhere can refer to any precise location – from a specific building entrance to a point on a hiking trail or a remote spot in a field – using just 3 words. If someone is in an emergency situation and struggling to describe their location, they can use what3words to provide their location details easily and accurately.
A person can find the what3words address for their current location by opening the what3words app. what3words will display the 3 words for that 3m square location and the caller can provide them to Fire dispatch, who can enter them into the what3words map in the control room in order to identify the precise location for dispatch.
If someone has the what3words app installed on their phone – it works offline, so they can discover their 3 word address without Wi-Fi or mobile data. The map might not download but the 3 word address will still be shown. what3words does not track the location of its users, it provides a method for users to choose to share their location. what3words keeps a record of the searches made within its mobile app and map site, and it will know the town or city from which those searches were made, but it does not hold location data at an individual level.
For more information on what3words, visit www.brampton.ca Mayor Patrick Brown said: “Community safety is of utmost importance to us at the City of Brampton as a Healthy and Safe City. The what3words mobile app will provide our Fire and Emergency Services team with more precise location identification, helping respond to emergency calls more quickly and accurately in times of need. I encourage all Brampton residents to download this potentially life-saving app.”
Rowena Santos, Regional Councillor, Wards 1 & 5; Chair, Community Services, City of Brampton, said: “Brampton is an innovative city, and we are dedicated to continually finding new ways to improve upon the services we provide for our residents. what3words is a simple way to refer to any precise location, which will only further quicken the time it takes for our dedicated Fire and Emergency Services staff to protect our community in emergency situations.”
Charmaine Williams, City Councillor, Wards 7 & 8; ViceChair, Community Services, City of Brampton, said: “As a WellRun City, we are always looking for ways to leverage valuable partnerships to benefit our residents. By partnering with what3words, anyone in Brampton who may find themselves faced with an emergency situation will be able to easily and accurately share their location with Fire dispatch. This will save time when it matters most.”
Bill Boyes, Chief, Brampton Fire and Emergency Services, City of Brampton, added: “In stressful or dangerous situations it can be difficult to focus on details like location, but every second counts in an emergency. what3words will help our Brampton Fire and Emergency Services team pinpoint precise location in times of emergency, getting us anywhere in Brampton accurately and quickly.”