We thank Mr Donovan Chee Kwok Hoe for his letter “Extend emergency SMS service to wider public”, published on Tuesday, 14 June 2016.
We agree with Mr Chee on the need for the public to take quick and appropriate actions in the event of a terrorist attack. The SG Secure national movement therefore seeks to sensitise, train and equip the community with skills and knowledge on how to respond in the event of an attack. The Singapore Police Force launched the “Run, Hide, Tell” advisory in April on what members of the public should do if they are caught in an attack.
The Police also recently launched the ‘71999’ SMS service to enable members of the public to seek assistance when it is unsafe to talk. 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).
When reporting incidents through the 999 Police hotline or the “71999” SMS service, 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. Members of the public can also submit photos and videos of the incident through the ‘i-Witness’ function on the Police@SG mobile application. More information on the “71999” SMS service and the i-Witness function is available on the SPF website at (http://www.police.gov.sg/sms-71999 and http://www.police.gov.sg/iwitness).
We encourage members of the community to learn more about the “Run, Hide, Tell” advisory and find out how they can play their part in the SG Secure movement (www.sgsecure.sg) so that together, we can keep Singapore safe and secure.
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
17 June 2016 @ 12:00 AM