GOLDEN, Colo. -- Imagine walking into a business only to find a gunman inside.

You can't call 911 but you can send a text. The only problem is that the 911 dispatch center can't receive the text.

It’s a worst case scenario that a Colorado firm is trying to change.

Intrado, Inc. is testing a prototype next generation 911 system in Black Hawk County, Iowa that will allow some residents to send text messages to emergency dispatch.

"We’ve had tragedies across the country including Virginia Tech and Columbine where kids didn’t want to talk because the intruder was there,” said Waterloo, Iowa, Police Chief Thomas Jennings.

“We’ve had tornadoes,” Jennings added. “And what we’ve found is that sometimes the calls won’t go through because of the storm, but texting will.”

“If we had a wish list (next generation) would be at the top,” said Jackie Kelley, of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.

Kelley said a next generation 911 system would be especially helpful in the high country, where people hiking, biking and hang gliding frequently get injured.

“Often they can’t reach out to us because of the remote terrain. They have to pass the information on to another hiker who has to hike in or out, or up to a better location to find a signal,” Kelley said.

She added that there are some locations in the county where you can’t make a call on your cell phone, but you can send and receive texts.

While a new system might help fill in the gaps, it’s unlikely to happen anytime soon.

“It’s a matter of technology and technology means money,” said Dan Householder, manager of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s communications unit.

Householder noted that the test in Iowa involves just one cell phone company, i wireless.

“It would be much more difficult,” he said, “to build a system in a major city and to include all the cell phone companies.”

He said he checked Wednesday and counted 18 cell phone companies that begin with the letter “A.”

He said it’s likely that not all cell phone companies would be “onboard.”

When asked how much a next generation system would cost, Householder replied, “There’s no way of knowing because the technology is not all there.”

He said reliability would be an issue and so would liability.

“It’s not just a matter of money,” Householder said. “It’s a matter of someone going on their cell phone and sending a text message and thinking, ‘I have help on the way.’ You don’t.”

“We do want this,” he added. “But only once it’s been tested and it’s working and that it’s not a detriment but actually helps us communicate, then we’ll be right there.”

There have been instances where people who needed help were able send a text to a friend and the friend then called 911.

Police in Colorado Springs were summoned to a house on Starlight Circle Tuesday night after a woman who had been assaulted texted her friend with the message, “Help me.”

Police said the woman had been choked and suffered other injuries. They are looking for her boyfriend, who they said has a history of domestic violence.