PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLA. (WSVN) - The Palm Beach Police and Fire Departments announced the introduction of new technology that aims to improve emergency response time in an effort to improve public safety.

When Palm Beach dispatch supervisor Marlene Peralta takes a call, she now has a new level of awareness. Prepared Live allows dispatchers to send a text to a caller’s cellphone by giving permission to access their camera and location during an emergency.

“Having that timely information helps us with decision-making along the way and throughout the whole incident,” said Palm Beach Police Capt. Will Rothrock.

Rothrock said this technology could help them solve cases faster and retrieve real-time information that they never had before.

“You can have a crime in progress, and you may be able to see the actual crime taking place or an accurate suspect description, which we don’t always get after the fact,” he said.

Here’s how it works. After calling the Palm Beach Police non-emergency line…

“You can stay on the line with me, just press the link that I just sent to you,” said Peralta.

A text will be sent to your phone. Once the caller clicks on the link in the text, it will give the dispatcher permission to livestream.

“OK, perfect, I’m able to see everything you’re seeing now,” said Peralta.

After the link has been clicked, the dispatcher will know exactly where you are and what you are looking at.

“It will show every time she moves as well, so it shows she was inside the building, she came out, and now is toward South County,” said Peralta.

As far as privacy, you only share what you choose, and any medical information is protected.

“It’s a game changer, just purely from the perspective of, you are getting a responder right there with you on the scene,” said Palm Beach Assistant Fire Chief Sean Baker.

Baker said a few clips of video or even a photo can change the way firefighters and paramedics respond to everything from a fire to a medical emergency.

“The paramedics that are going to a call literally can do assessments and start pulling protocols and moving their treatment toward that before we even get on scene,” said Baker.

Both agencies said it’s only a matter of time before a Prepared Live helps save someone’s life.

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