Blog | 911 Emergency Dispatcher | 911 Emergency Dispatch

Vancouver, B.C. – From a small parking spot to a bad haircut to late-night vacuuming, E-Comm continued to receive calls in 2019 that don’t belong on 9-1-1.

Since 2013, E-Comm has surveyed its call-taking staff each year for calls that tie up emergency lines and, each year, there’s no shortage of examples of calls they have handled that do not warrant a call to 9-1-1. Equally alarming for the organization this year was an emerging trend, where some callers know they aren’t in an emergency, but call 9-1-1 anyway seeking general information.

“Sometimes, it feels like people may have forgotten that the reason to call 9-1-1 is to get help in a life or death situation,” explains Chelsea Brent, the call taker who handled the number one call on this year’s list. “I take a lot of 9-1-1 calls where ‘I know this isn’t an emergency’ are the first words out of the caller’s mouth. But when I’m answering calls that aren’t an emergency, it means I’m not available for someone else who really does need critical help.”

Some of the general questions received by 9-1-1 call takers this year included asking for information about local water restrictions and a caller wondering why traffic was so bad. Checking with municipalities or DriveBC is the right source for these questions, not 9-1-1 or police non-emergency lines.

Here is E-Comm’s list of top 10 reasons not to call 9-1-1 in 2019

1. To complain hotel parking spot was too small
2. To complain hair salon didn’t style their hair properly
3. To complain their neighbour was vacuuming late at night
4. Because they were upset the coin laundry machine didn’t have enough water
5. To enquire why traffic was so bad
6. To request police bring a shovel to dig their car out of the snow in front of their house
7. Because police are being ‘too loud’ responding to an emergency and requesting that they should come back in the morning
8. To get information about water restrictions
9. To report a broken ATM machine
10. Because a gas station wouldn’t let them use the washroom

“Our staff must treat each call as an emergency until they are confident there isn’t one,” says Jasmine Bradley, E-Comm Corporate Communications manager. “Although these calls may seem absurd at the surface, our call-takers must take the time to investigate each one to make sure there isn’t a real emergency before directing them elsewhere. That takes time away from helping those in crisis.”

E-Comm is responsible for 99 per cent of the province’s 9-1-1 call volume and handled more than 1.6 million 9-1-1 calls in 2019. For more information about E-Comm, visit ecomm911.ca.

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Photo/Interview Opportunity

E-Comm invites the media to its Lower Mainland Emergency Communications Centre at 3301 East Pender Street on Monday, December 30 between 9:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. for interview opportunities with Chelsea Brent, E-Comm call taker who answered the number one call on our top ten list, and Jasmine Bradley, Corporate Communications Manager.

For interviews, you must confirm your attendance in advance by emailing [email protected]  

Note: Government photo identification is required to enter the E-Comm building. Photos and video in the Emergency Communications Centre is permitted under specific conditions.

Additional Media Resources

• Photo of E-Comm call taker Chelsea Brent

Audio file – a sample of 9-1-1 nuisance calls handled by call takers at E-Comm in 2019:

• “You’re calling 9-1-1 to ask about traffic?”
• “…to find out if there’s a water restriction?”
• “Your neighbour is vacuuming?”
• “Somebody won’t let you use their washroom?”
• “You can’t move your vehicle…”
• “There’s not enough water in the laundry machine…”
• ”Your car doesn’t fit in the parking spot.”
• “This is not a police issue and it’s certainly not a 9-1-1 call.”
• “This is not a police matter in any way.”
• “When you dial 9-1-1, it puts you to emergency services.”
• “9-1-1 is for life or death emergencies only. So, I mean, if you can’t get your car out of the snow, then maybe take the bus or SkyTrain to wherever you’re going – OK?”

Media Contact
Kaila Butler
Senior Communications Specialist

Despite public perception, current phone technology in Canada does not pinpoint your exact location or provide 9-1-1 call takers with specific information (such as apartment number or the floor of the building) if you call 9-1-1 from a cellphone. This is why “what is your location” is the first question our call taker asks you when you call.

In an effort to education the public about the importance of always knowing their location when dialing 9-1-1, E-Comm has launched a public education campaign which will run on the radio and across social media.

For more information, please read the full news release or take a look at the campaign materials.

Vancouver, B.C.–With nearly three-quarters of 9-1-1 calls in B.C. originating from cellphones, E-Comm says knowing your location is now more important than ever. Of the more than 1.13 million 9-1-1 calls the emergency communications centre has received so far in 2019, 74% originated from a cellphone–a 10% increase over five years. With more people using mobiles only and social media geotagging and delivery apps that show location in real-time, E-Comm is concerned that there’s a potentially dangerous public misconception that cellphones provide an exact address or location to 9-1-1 call takers.

“While calls from landlines give us a person’s exact whereabouts, information from cellphones is nowhere as precise,” explains E-Comm’s Director of Public Safety Initiatives, Ryan Lawson. “Because location is determined by cell tower triangulation, it’s generally narrowed down to within a block of where someone is calling. That’s helpful, but it doesn’t eliminate the need for our staff to work with callers to find out exactly where they are so first responders can get to them as fast as possible.”

Lawson adds that new 9-1-1 technology, currently in development by cellphone carriers as part of a North American-wide initiative called Next Generation 9-1-1, will allow for future improvements.

“In the coming years, we’ll see calls delivered to 9-1-1 with more precise location and additional information about the caller, the device being used and the location from which it is calling. This means call takers will spend less time trying to determine where the emergency is taking place and dispatchers will be able to make better decisions on what resources to dispatch and where. Until then, ‘what is your location’ will always be the first question our staff ask.”

9-1-1 call taker Madison Sheane agrees.  “When you call 9-1-1, my job is to get you the help you need as quickly as possible. You can help me do that faster by answering my questions, including knowing your building or home address, the streets or landmarks you are near and your compass directions. This allows me to narrow down precisely where you are and I can get that information to first responders who are already on their way to help you.”

Sheane adds that people are often surprised when she asks them for their address on a call. They assume 9-1-1 call takers already have this information, based on what they see portrayed on TV and in movies.

E-Comm surveyed its 9-1-1 staff to ask what they thought was the most critical piece of operational information callers need to understand and knowing your location was number one. As such, E-Comm has launched a public campaign highlighting this: https://bit.ly/2DHFsGE

E-Comm was the first 9-1-1 centre in Canada to begin receiving general location information from cellphone carriers when it first became available in 2009. The organization is now participating in the next phases of 9-1-1 evolution mandated by the CRTC.

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Photo/Interview Opportunity

E-Comm invites the media to its Lower Mainland Emergency Communications Centre at 3301 East Pender Street on Monday, December 9 between 9:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. for interview opportunities with E-Comm Director of Public Safety Initiatives Ryan Lawson and 9-1-1 Call Taker Madison Sheane.

For interviews, you must confirm your attendance in advance by emailing [email protected]. 

Note: Government photo identification is required to enter the E-Comm building. Photos and video in the Emergency Communications Centre is permitted under specific conditions.

Additional Resources

• E-Comm’s location campaign collateral, including social media graphics/GIFs and audio files for radio spots are available online: www.ecomm911.ca/commnity/9-1-1-education/campaigns/know-your-location/
• More information about Next Generation 9-1-1 can be found on the CRTC’s website: https://crtc.gc.ca/eng/phone/911/gen.htm
• Learn more about E-Comm: www.ecomm911.ca/

Media contact:
Kaila Butler
Senior Communications Specialist

Vancouver, B.C. – The Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) of Canada has named E-Comm training specialist Colin Brittain as the country’s 2019 Trainer of the Year. Brittain was recognized at a special ceremony in Halifax, where emergency communication professionals from across Canada were gathered for the annual APCO professional development conference.

In receiving the award, Brittain was heralded as the perfect embodiment of an individual who has been “vital to the excellence and success of a training program within a Public Safety Communications Agency.”

Since joining E-Comm in 2003, Brittain has worked as a police Call Taker, Dispatcher, Training Specialist, and Supervisor and currently holds the position of Policy, Support and Implementation Manager.

“Our training department is instrumental in the success of 9-1-1 service and our team’s ability to meet the demands of the job to ensure the public receives the help they need and first responders are supported in the critical work they do,” says Oliver Grüter-Andrew, President and CEO of E-Comm. “This award is a well-deserved recognition of Colin’s ongoing commitment to public safety, and a testament to the calibre of all our trainers.”

Brittain was honoured for his leadership in creating the training program for the opening of a new 9-1-1/Police Dispatch Centre to serve the Greater Victoria area. He was part of the team that determined the required training curriculum for the staff who would be supporting this centre and was instrumental in supporting the training of these 60 staff members over a five-week period.

“When opening a new centre, there is a certain amount of additional pressure that gets put on the training team to make sure staff are appropriately prepared to take those first calls. Colin absolutely rose to this challenge with a positive, calming demeanour that was contagious to all,” adds Grüter-Andrew. “His willingness to assist others and his commitment to supporting E-Comm employees for the betterment of public safety in British Columbia is unequaled.”

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About E-Comm

E-Comm is the first point of contact for 9-1-1 callers in 25 regional districts in British Columbia and provides dispatch services for more than 70 police agencies and fire departments. E‐Comm also owns and operates the largest multi‐jurisdictional, tri‐service wide‐area radio network in the province used by police, fire and ambulance personnel throughout Metro Vancouver and parts of the Fraser Valley. As of October 31, E-Comm has handled over 1.5 million 9-1-1 calls in B.C. so far in 2019.

Media contact

Kaila Butler
Senior Communications Specialist

Media Resources
Photo of Colin Brittain (centre) accepting the APCO Canada Trainer of the Year award.

Vancouver, B.C.—E-Comm and CUPE Local 873, the Union that represents E-Comm’s 533 Bargaining Unit employees, have mutually agreed to proceed to interest arbitration to settle their Collective Agreement, which expired December 31, 2018.

The parties have been engaged in collective bargaining and mediation at the Labour Relations Board (LRB) since March 2019. Due to the critical nature of the public safety services E-Comm and its employees provide, the LRB has also been involved in negotiating essential services levels to limit any impacts in the event of labour disruption.   Given the process of interest arbitration will result in a binding Collective Agreement, any labour disruption at E-Comm has been avoided and essential services negotiations are concluded.

The parties have agreed on a process to select an arbitrator who will conduct an interest arbitration on an expedited basis.

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About E-Comm
E-Comm is the first point of contact for 9-1-1 callers in 25 regional districts in British Columbia and provides dispatch services for more than 70 police agencies and fire departments. E‐Comm also owns and operates the largest multi‐jurisdictional, tri‐service wide‐area radio network in the province used by police, fire and ambulance personnel throughout Metro Vancouver and parts of the Fraser Valley. As of October 31, E-Comm has handled over 1.5 million 9-1-1 calls in B.C. so far in 2019.

Media Contacts
Jasmine Bradley
E-Comm Corporate Communications

Matthew J. Bordewick
Chairperson
CUPE Local 873-02
Emergency Dispatchers of BC