Emergency services like ‘ICE’ in mobile phones

EMERGENCY services have praised local residents for carrying ICE or ‘in case of emergency’ contacts in their mobile phones. ICE is an emergency contact added to a phone so the emergency services know who to call if an incident occurs.
By The Newsroom
Published 6th Mar 2012, 11:00 BST

Residents were praised as the result of a survey by the Bedfordshire and Luton Local Resilience Forum (BLLRF), which revealed 43%of people living in Bedfordshire have an ICE contact in their phone.

BLLRF is made up of all the agencies who would come together in an emergency situation such as a flood, major traffic accident or flu pandemic. The survey was commissioned to help the resilience forum assess the current level of emergency preparedness amongst residents.

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BLLRF chairman, Deputy Chief Constable John Fletcher spoke on behalf of emergency services and said:“It is very encouraging to see local residents taking emergency planning seriously. Having an emergency contact listed in your phone helps inform the emergency services about who they should call if something happens to you. It only takes a minute to add an ICE contact to your phone but having one can make a real difference to an emergency response.”

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Deputy Chief Constable John Fletcher continues “It is important that residents choose a number that’s easy to get in touch with – a home number may be of little use in an emergency if the ICE contact works full time. It would also be useful for your ICE contact to know about any medical condition you may have and any medication you take.”

If you have a smart phone with a password you can still add your ICE contact onto your screensaver by downloading an app which allows you to add text to a picture. Once you’ve downloaded the app you can add the word ‘ICE’ on your picture and the number of your contact underneath.

Follow these tips to get the best out of ICE:

>>Make sure the person whose name and number you are giving has agreed to be your ICE partner

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>>Give your ICE partner a list of people they should contact on your behalf - including your place of work.

>>Ensure your ICE partner knows about any medical conditions that could affect your emergency treatment - for example allergies or current medication

>>If you are under 18, ensure your ICE partner is a parent or guardian authorised to make decision on your behalf - for example if you need a life or death operation

>>Should your preferred contact be deaf, then type ICETEXT then the name of your contact before saving the number

Related topics:Emergency services