Local residents who find it inconvenient to report an emergency to police by calling 110 can do it with their fingers and thumbs, the Shenzhen Municipal Public Security Bureau announced Monday.

With the completion of the first phase of work on a police short message platform, people can now send text messages to 0755110 to report crimes or incidents.

Only those who are deaf and mute, who cannot speak due to the emergency, or who are reporting SMS fraud are encouraged to use the service. Those who report SMS fraud need to send the numbers from which they receive the messages.

The police remind people that calling 110 is still recommended when the situation allows, since short messages can only carry limited information and cannot give a full account of the incident. The police also remind those who choose SMS reporting to include in their messages basic facts like the time, site and nature of the emergency.

The 110 center will contact the caller with a return message if any information is unclear.

At present, only China Mobile users can access the service, and will be charged 0.1 yuan (US$0.01) for each piece of information. Unicom and Shihuatong subscribers will be able to use the service when the second phase of the platform is completed.

The police warn that anyone sending fake messages will be punished and have their mobile numbers blacklisted.

(Shenzhen Daily November 8, 2006)