On May 1, 2016, the Singapore Police Force launched a new SMS text messaging platform.

The SMS71999 Service is for all members of the public who require emergency assistance -- especially when it is not safe to call "999" -- to text the police at 71999 for help urgently.

One example of such a scenario would be during a hostage situation, when the informant is hiding or unable to speak for fear of revealing his or her position.

How it works is straightforward:

1. Compose a brief SMS message containing information on the nature of emergency (what has happened, or is happening) and the location where it is happening at

2. Send a message to 71999

3. When your message is successfully received by the police emergency operator, an acknowledgement message will be sent back to you.

4. Where necessary, emergency operators may need to seek further information or clarification from you

5. After obtaining the necessary information, depending on the type of emergency reported, police, ambulance or fire rescue personnel may be despatched.

Ultimately, how well the service works is still dependent on how well the SMSes get composed in times of emergency.

The police has encouraged the public who eventually do use the SMS service to be as detailed as possible.

For example, information such as the number of attackers and their descriptions, the weapons they are carrying as well as the location they are heading towards, will be very useful.

However, the service cannot support Chinese characters at the moment, so it works purely for English.

The police has also clarified that this new initiative differs from the “70999” SMS service which is meant for the members of the Deaf, Hard-of-hearing and Speech-impaired (DHS) community, who have registered through the National Council of Social Service (NCSS).

Most importantly, reserve this service for real emergencies only.

Top photo via Singapore Police Force Facebook

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