MEDICINE HAT, AB — The Medicine Hat Police Service is looking at a new way of communicating with the public.
A new mobile app is in the works, which would get information from the service, right to your fingertips.
The idea was presented during the police commission meeting Thursday night.
Inspector Brent Secondiak said the idea came from the community survey the service did last year.
The survey showed the public wants more information communicated over the phone.
Secondiak said that’s where the idea for an app came from.
At the meeting, he told commission members that several American agencies have also been moving towards something compatible with mobile devices.
He said one of the biggest features will be the option of push notifications.
“If there’s a collision, if there’s a high-risk incident, we can tell the public where that is and we can tell them to stay away from that area,” he said. “So, you don’t have to wait to check our website or our news feed or go to a social media site. It’ll absolutely, instantly pop-up on your phone.”
Secondiak added the app will make it easier to communicate with the service by sending in tips and even pictures.
The service moved to online reporting last year, but Secondiak said the uptake hasn’t been great.
They were hoping to get hundreds, if not thousands, of reports submitted through their website but have only received 157.
He thinks the app would make it easier than logging onto a desktop and said this way you’ve got everything you need right in the palm of your hand.
“Part of the issue is that you have to go into the website and fill out the form or go back to a home computer, but with this app, you’ll be able to do it directly from your phone. Make a complaint, put it your tombstone information and then submit it right from your mobile device,” he added.
Secondiak said the app has been approved and is in the developing stages.
It’s hoped it can be rolled out by January 2019.
