The first text-to-911 was sent in 2009 in Iowa. Now, according to data collected by the Federal Communications Commission, more than 1,600 emergency call centers across the nation have configured systems to receive text message requests for 911 services, up from about 650 two years ago . But that's barely a quarter of the roughly 6,000 overall in the country. Figures are a bit murky since they are self-reported to the FCC.