Ontario police force will now text you if you make an accidental 'pocket dial'
It's estimated that about 90 per cent of Canadians now have a smartphone and if you have one, you know it's easy to dial 9-1-1 — sometimes, even by accident.
“We get hundreds of these calls a day, which amounts to thousands of accidental calls a year,” inspector Paul Hallett with Durham Regional Police 9-1-1 Communications told CTV News Toronto Tuesday.
The police force is trying to better manage these accidental calls and has now decided to text someone first to let them know they made an accidental call to the 9-1-1 system.
Under previous protocols, to deal with an accidental 9-1-1 call, an operator would have to phone the person back to see if it was an accident or a real emergency.
The problem? Many people would not bother to answer the phone and then the operator would then have to follow up.
In the event that the line was left open, the operator would have to send police, fire and ambulance crews to make sure there wasn’t an actual emergency.
Now, an automated text is sent to the person that states, “Durham Region 9-1-1. Your phone dialled 9-1-1, but disconnected before reaching an operator.”
The person is told they will be getting a call from a 9-1-1 operator and they should answer the call and remain on the line to advise if it was an accident or if assistance is actually needed.
Hallett said, “we are getting some pretty good success because people seem to respond to text messages ... and it's really cutting our calls in half."
Another time-waster for emergency operators is dealing with 9-1-1 calls made by children playing with phones.
Halton Regional Police said last year there were approximately 300 cases of kids accidentally calling 9-1-1.
Even if it's an old phone that's no longer connected to a service provider without a SIM card, it can still get through to a 9-1-1 operator.
Emergency operators want everyone to be aware that accidental calls by children and adults put unneeded strain on 9-1-1 services.
“It is a real drain on resources and, with thousands of these calls coming in now, it's creating a lot of work and unnecessary work," Hallett said.
Durham's new initiative to send texts for "pocket dial" calls is also being put in place in other 9-1-1 operation centers across North America.
If you do call 9-1-1 by mistake, don't hang up. You should advise the operator whether it was an accidental call, first.
There are no fines or penalties — emergency services just want to stop accidental calls from wasting resources.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
A healthy lifestyle can mitigate genetic risk for early death by 62%, study suggests
Even if your genetics put you at greater risk for early death, a healthy lifestyle could help you significantly combat it, according to a new study.
When you have a moment's notice to evacuate, what do you take?
Knowing what to have at home, or take with you for an evacuation, can be useful and even life-saving.
B.C. brings in law on name changes on day that child killer's new identity revealed
The BC NDP have tabled legislation aimed at stopping people who have committed certain heinous acts from changing their names.
No, a best-selling American writing duo didn't pen a Galen Weston romance novel
You would be forgiven for thinking Christina Lauren's latest romance novel stars a hunky reimagining of Loblaw chairman Galen G. Weston.
Ellen DeGeneres addresses the 'hurtful' end of her talk show in new stand-up set
Ellen DeGeneres is reflecting on how her talk show came to an end in her newest Netflix special, 'Ellen's Last Stand ... Up Tour.'
Avs forward Valeri Nichushkin suspended at least six months
Colorado Avalanche forward Valeri Nichushkin was suspended for at least six months without pay and placed in Stage 3 of the league's player assistance program.
Western University researchers unlock potential 'cure' for ALS
New research out of London, Ont.'s Western University is shedding light on a potential cure for ALS, in which the targeting of the interaction between two proteins can halt or fully reverse the disease's progression.
Police release 3D images of young child found in an Ontario river two years ago
Police have released a three-dimensional image of a young child whose remains were discovered in the Grand River in Dunnville, Ont. almost two years ago.
B.C. man fighting for refund after finding someone living at Whistler vacation rental
Edwin Mostered spent thousands of dollars booking a vacation home in Whistler, B.C., for a group skiing trip earlier this year – or so he thought.