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
Trudeau acknowledges charges in Nijjar killing, calls for commitment to democracy
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has acknowledged the charges laid Friday in relation to the murder of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
Pastrnak scores winner, Bruins down Leafs 2-1 in overtime in Game 7
Sheldon Keefe told his players hockey history would remember them one way or another.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Bodies recovered in Mexico likely 2 Australians, 1 American who went missing: officials
Three bodies recovered in an area of Baja California are likely to be those of the two Australians and an American who went missing last weekend during a camping and surfing trip, the state prosecutor’s office said Saturday.
Bombarded with spam texts? Stats show the problem is getting worse in Canada
In particular, messages that involve phishing — an attack where a scammer tries to trick the recipient into clicking a malicious link, downloading malware or sharing sensitive information — are on the rise.
Trudeau 'absolutely' best person to lead the Liberals in next election: LeBlanc says
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc insists he's not planning a leadership campaign to head the Liberal party, should current leader and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resign, seemingly quashing rumours he's planning to make a move for his boss' job.
Princess Anne lays wreath at B.C. veteran's cemetery; receives 21-gun salute
Princess Anne paid tribute to veterans buried at a cemetery in British Columbia today, laying a wreath to honour the more than 2,500 military personnel and family members buried there.
Macklem tries to stay out of the fray as MPs do their best to use him to score points
Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem navigates a political minefield every time he testifies before the House of Commons finance committee.
Amid climate change warnings, Canadians lukewarm on electric vehicles
Amid scientists' warnings that nations need to transition away from fossil fuels to limit climate change, Canadians are still lukewarm on electric vehicles, according to a study conducted by Nanos Research for CTV News.