In New South Wales, it is now possible to live stream emergency situations directly to police thanks to an innovative technology system.

Thanks to the nationwide rollout of BluLink, callers who dial a number can provide the police with GPS coordinates, live video streams, uploaded digital media and text messages via a link sent to them by the emergency response center.

The Internet-based media platform can be used to help police confirm the exact location of an emergency and for the public to send live images of incidents to police as they happen.

This information enables emergency services to deploy the appropriate resources, as the police can better locate incidents and possibly also support further investigations.

Around four in five triple-zero calls come from mobile phones. BluLink has already helped with more than 8,000 incidents during a year-long trial and was used by investigators to collect and sort footage of the mass stabbing at Bondi Junction in April.

In another case, two teenage brothers who were lost in the Blue Mountains after crashing their dirt bikes were rescued in an area with poor reception 45 minutes after they reported their location.

“BluLink is an innovative way for us to get more information during a triple-zero call, helping us improve our police response,” NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Stacey Maloney said on Sunday.

It’s been three years since advanced mobile location technology was rolled out nationwide, allowing Android and Apple phones to automatically send location data to “triple zero” dispatchers.

In a feature long requested by the public, BluLink allows callers to switch to text messaging, while phone calls are cumbersome.

These chat messages can be translated into 150 different languages ​​and since the platform is not an app, you don’t need to download anything beforehand. It also won’t be used for every triple-zero call or forced on callers.

NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley said officers rely on the public to accurately describe an incident so they know what they are dealing with and how to respond. “BluLink gives them unparalleled access to a scene before they even get there,” she said.

The service’s operator, UK-based GoodSAM, will be paid $6.3 million over four years, according to a contract notice. The system has been used by New Zealand paramedics, British police and US firefighters, with GoodSAM claiming that the San Antonio Fire Department saved $7.6 million during one year of use.