OnStar Helps Coordinate Emergency Response for U.S. Flood Victims

General Motors Co.’s OnStar telematics unit is working with emergency response organizations to help coordinate resources and assistance to people in need in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.

OnStar tells Automotive News it is using its four North American call centers in Michigan, North Carolina, Nova Scotia and Ontario to handle overflow calls to 911, the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency, Red Cross and local groups. The centers handled about 19,000 calls related to the storm through Wednesday.

OnStar has about 200,000 customers in the areas impacted by the storm.

In addition to forwarding information to emergency service providers, OnStar has provided callers with evacuation routes and/or contacted their family and friends upon request. In some cases, people are using their vehicles as a last resort after losing power and cell phone service in their homes.

Customers with water-damaged phones also were able to use OnStar’s wi-fi hotspot internet connectivity for laptop computers to monitor news sites and contact family members via email and social media.