CEBU CITY (PNA) — The Junior Chamber International (JCI) Cebu held a soft launching Friday of Project ICE (In Case of Emergency) that make use of cellphones for quicker response to emergencies.

Jovenir Bataican, JCI Cebu member, said the project is meant to encourage people with cellphones to put in their phone directories a contact number that could be called in case of emergencies.

The project’s soft launching was held at the Cuenco Hall, Legislative Building, Cebu City Hall last Friday. It is expected to be formally launched by June.

“In a country considered the texting capital of the world, almost everyone has access to a cellphone but not many carry identification cards with updated contact details. With the project, paramedics can check the mobile phones for the listed ICE contact number of the victim and a call can be immediately made to notify their kin,” said Bataican.

In the project, a cellphone user types in his cellphone a period (.) and the letters I, c, and e; hence (.ice) to ensure that the ICE contact appears on top of the phone book and before names listed under letter A.