Trying to explain an emergency over a phone call can be frustrating. You’re juggling fear, noise, and quick questions, and you still have to describe what’s right in front of you. Google announced Emergency Live Video on Wednesday to make that sharing easier by letting dispatchers see the situation through your phone’s camera, but only if you agree to share it. This is not a video call button that you can press at any time. It is transmitter led. During an emergency call or an emergency text exchange, a dispatcher can send a request to your Android phone. You will see a message on the screen, and you choose what happens next. Accept it, and your camera starts streaming live video. Deny it and nothing is shared. What you’ll see on your phone Google says the stream is encrypted, and you can stop sharing whenever you want. That control is important because emergencies can change quickly, and you may not want your camera running once you’ve shown responders what they need to see. The value comes in situations where words fail you. Imagine an accident on the side of the road. You try to explain if someone is bleeding, if there is smoke, and if someone is conscious. Right now, even simple details get tangled up. With live video, a sender can request a real-time view and you can share it with a tap, giving responders better context on what to send. Google also pointed to medical cases where video can help a dispatcher put someone through CPR. Video won’t replace human judgment, but it can reduce guesswork when every minute counts. Setup and controls You don’t need to setup anything beforehand. If your phone and region support Emergency Live Video, it only appears when a dispatcher requests it during an emergency call or text. Most people won’t even realize it exists until the day they actually need help. If you agree, the stream starts and you can stop it whenever you want. Some reports also mention that you can change cameras, which comes in handy if you need to show an injury up close or turn the view to smoke, fire or anything happening behind you. The central idea remains simple throughout. Shippers can ask, but you stay in control from start to finish. Availability and privacy Emergency Live Video works on phones with Android 8 or later, using Google Play services. The rollout is limited for now. Google says it’s available in the United States and in certain regions of Germany and Mexico. The company also said it’s working with public safety organizations to bring the feature to more places, a reminder that emergency tools depend on the systems on the other end of the call, not just what your phone can do. Privacy is the obvious question here, and Google’s choices are meant to keep the feature from feeling intrusive. The stream is encrypted, it is subscribed and it can be stopped at any time. This makes it feel less like surveillance and more like a tool you use when describing the scene isn’t enough. Where it fits into Android’s security push, Google already offers security features on Android like Emergency SOS, crash detection and fall detection, and Apple has its own set of emergency tools. Live video fits into that broader push, but it also solves a specific problem that most people recognize. It’s hard to describe a scene clearly when you’re under stress. If you ever see a request to share live video during an emergency call or text, remember you’re not locked out. You can accept, decline or stop at any time. It’s a feature you hope you never need, but the day you do, it can help make it feel a little closer.