FireTextResponse vs Incident Responder

NOTE: This application WILL NOT WORK unless first authorized by the agency from which emergency notifications will be generated. The FireTextResponse iPhone Application allows first responders to receive push alert messaging for incident calls, incident information or other messaging, actual page audio of the dispatched incident, responders status to the incident, and more. The FireTextResponse iPhone Application is for users of the FireTextResponse System only. Users must be registered with a departments FireTextResponse System first, before downloading and installing this application. This application will not work until authorized registration by the agency from which emergency notifications will be generated. FireTextResponse is a supplemental tool only and is not intended to replace an agency's normal form of emergency notification.

The target audience for Incident Responder are first responders who are part of a municipal agency such as a volunteer fire department or ambulance. It requires that the agency is already set up with a CAD (computer-aided dispatch) system. In order to use the app, the agency needs to have their CAD pages forwarded to an email address assigned for use by Incident Responder. Contact the developer to set this up, or to get information on how to log in with credentials for a test account in order to explore app functionality. When a new incident is dispatched via CAD, it will show up nearly immediately in the app, and first responders can set their response (En Route, Available, Unavailable), along with response time and station. This allows fellow responders to quickly see who is responding to an incident and when they will be there. There is no charge to use the app. At this time the app is primarily for use by agencies within Mendocino County, CA. Contact the developer to discuss using it outside of that area (limited to within the USA at this time). User accounts are created only by an admin for each agency. Within a specific agency, the list of incidents, responders and responses to each incident will only be accessible by other members of that agency, they cannot see data for other agencies. NOTE: Incident Responder should NOT be used as the primary means for first responder incident notification, as there is no guarantee that it will receive data for each incident, or that individual incident data will be complete.