How can I contact emergency services in the US via the internet?
At this very moment, I'm out in the woods typing away on my laptop. I have an internet connection, and my phone can use that connection to send text messages, but I have no voice phone service.
How can I contact emergency services from here?
I'm in the United States (San Jose, specifically¹), so normally I'd call 911. Currently the local 911 service doesn't support text messaging.
¹ More specifically, I'm in a cabin in the mountains just outside San Jose, 20 minutes drive from the nearest hospital. There are a surprising number of places in these mountains where you can find a wi-fi signal being broadcast from some hidden cabin, but very few places where you can get a cell phone signal.
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Almost every emergency dispatch center has a non-emergency phone number. While services like Skype and Google Voice can't call 911 directly, you can look up "<region> non-emergency dispatch" and get a number with a local area code. Call them and tell them this is an emergency but you couldn't access 911. They will transfer you to an emergency dispatcher. If you're in a National Park or on other federal lands you can typically call the park headquarters and again ask to be transferred to emergency dispatch.
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All 4 major carriers have either implemented or are implementing text-to-911 service.
U.S. mobile providers commit to emergency texting service
In the event that this doesn't work, you can always text a friend or family member. They can then call 911 for you. If they are in a different area, then they will be transferred to the correct area.
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If you have a VoIP-account and are able to use it from your mobile-phone you should be able to use it for calling emergency service. Note that with VoIP I don´t mean Skype but a real SIP). You can find out about this contacting your VoIP-service provider.
If you are staying some time in the same area it can be worth calling directly at the local hospital or police department and ask if they can provide you with call-through numbers to their emergency service. You should be able to find their number on the internet. You can then use any internet call service to call these numbers, e. g. Skype (make sure you have enough credit for calling!).
I would refrain from using texting services like suggested by @TomCollins via Internet. Thats because there is no reason why VoIP should not be allowed but texting via internet would be. You can´t use Skype because they wouldn´t know where you are - I would guess you can´t use WhatsApp for the same reason, even if there is text-to-911 service.
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Even Google voice has to call your phone to connect a voice call, thereby requiring a signal.
If you really are anticipating the need to contact emergency services without cellphone reception, look into purchasing an inReach http://www.inreachdelorme.com/why-inreach/
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