9-1-1 emergency line restored
Residents is some parts of Essex County in need of emergency assistance were left with nowhere to turn for a short time Monday night.
An advisory was sent out at 10:40 p.m. from several emergency services, including OPP, LaSalle Police, Windsor Fire and EMS informing the public the Windsor Central Ambulance Communication Centre was investigating reports of residents unable to contact 9-1-1 by cell phone in the towns of Tecumseh, Essex, Lakeshore, Leamington and Amherstburg.
“We sent out social media and media blast outs to inform the public of what to do in this case,” Essex County OPP const. Steven Duguay explains. “We reverted back to our toll free 1-888-310-1122 number, non-emergent number and then asking the public to call that and we would triage calls and treat them as priority.”
The issue was localized to Essex County and Durguay says there were no major issued reported during the outage.
Duguay says the non-emergency number is province wide, and will connect you to the proper detachment.
“It’s good to have the non-emergency number maybe written on your refrigerator or somewhere in your residence if 911 isn’t available to have that backup,” he said.
“1-888-310-1122. That needs to be a number that is in the top of mind,” says Leamington Mayor Hilda MacDonald.
She urges residents to learn the non-emergency number, saying recent events like the Wheatley explosion are still fresh in mind.
“There needs to be a push for the public to know that or to at least have it at their fingertips if they don’t know it off by heart they need to have it at their fingertips,” MacDonald says. “Whether it’s public service announcements. Whether its mailing out those little magnetic things you put on the fridge with that number, I think this is something that needs to be done.”
Essex Windsor EMS Chief Bruce Krauter says the problem was reported and rectified quickly, and that service provider officials continue to investigate the cause of the outage.
“I’m satisfied and happy that they got it fixed and I’m also happy that there were no adverse events reported,” he says.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.