Vancouver, B.C.—Today at 8:49 a.m. E-Comm officially became the first point of contact for 9-1-1 callers in the Upper Fraser Valley. British Columbia’s largest 9-1-1 centre is now responsible for answering the frontend portion of 9-1-1 calls for the City of Chilliwack, Village of Harrison Hot Springs, Districts of Hope, Kent and Mission and Electoral areas A-H. E-Comm call-takers will then immediately transfer calls to the appropriate police, fire or ambulance agency.
“This change will be seamless for our residents and anyone with an emergency should continue to dial 9-1-1 as usual,” explained Paul Gipps, CAO of the Fraser Valley Regional District. “Our priority is ensuring communities within our region continue to receive high-quality 9-1-1 service, and we feel E-Comm is able to provide this level of service—all at a significant cost savings.”
The transition was smooth, with the first call received by E-Comm at 8:50 a.m. The call was from Chilliwack and was a request for the RCMP.
“9-1-1 is a lifeline, which is why thorough preparation was our top priority for today’s transition,” said E-Comm President and CEO David Guscott just prior to the changeover. “We’re eager and ready, to share our large team of experienced 9-1-1 staff, our technology and purpose-built facility with residents in the Upper Fraser Valley and we are proud to be their partners in public safety.”
Approximately 60,000 emergency calls placed each year from the Upper Fraser Valley are now being routed to E-Comm. Highly-trained call-takers will quickly confirm which agency the caller requires and for which location before transferring police calls to the Chilliwack RCMP, fire calls to Fraser Valley Regional Fire Dispatch and requests for ambulance to BC Emergency Health Services’ dispatch centre in Vancouver.
-30-
E-Comm is the Primary 9-1-1 Public Safety Answer Point (PSAP) for 25 regional districts and other communities spanning from Vancouver Island to the Alberta and U.S. borders, to north of Prince George and is the largest 9-1-1 call centre in British Columbia. E-Comm also provides dispatch services to 33 police and fire departments and operates the largest multi-jurisdictional, tri-service emergency radio system in the province.
Media contact:
E-Comm 9-1-1
Jody Robertson
604-215-4956
[email protected]
Fraser Valley Regional District
Jennifer Kinneman
604-702-5056
[email protected]