Abstract: A method for facilitating the placement of emergency calls from a wireless telephone within a cellular, or other wireless, communication system is disclosed herein. A wireless telephone is configured to receive from a base station a local emergency number associated with the service area of the base station. During operation of the wireless telephone, each number dialed or otherwise entered in by a user is compared to the local emergency number. If the dialed number matches the local emergency number, an emergency call is initiated by the wireless telephone; otherwise, the wireless telephone initiates a standard telephone call in response to entry of the dialed number. The user interface of the wireless telephone may optionally provide an indication upon the placement of an emergency call.