B.C. residents will soon be interfacing with a new system when making emergency calls to 911, and we have some details on what that means.
E-Comm, which provides 911 services to 99 per cent of callers in B.C., issued the news on Tuesday afternoon, saying that it will be migrating to a “next-generation” 911 network.
Until now, B.C. and Canada have been using “decades-old” analog infrastructure. The new system will be a digital network.
The transition is federally mandated by the CRTC.
This process will span the next two months, from the historical 911 to the new NG911. Some Vancouver communities have already gone live with the new system, and staggered migrations will continue between now and the end of November.
On the surface, callers won’t experience much difference at all, as the changes will be largely invisible to the public. You’ll still call the same way, and you’ll be connected with the service you require the same way.
However, E-Comm says that the change lays the foundation for future enhancements to “better support public and first responder safety.”
This includes real-time text to 911, more accurate caller information and streaming video sharing.
The new technology is thanks to a $150-million investment from the B.C. government.
“These capabilities are not part of E-Comm’s initial transition in 2026, and timing will largely be dependent on a national rollout to be determined by the CRTC,” E-Comm says.
There is one public-facing change, which is the introduction of an automated callback system.
“With faster digital technology, the new NG911 network will detect all calls, including those disconnected within milliseconds that are not received by E-Comm today,” E-Comm states.
“As a result, the number of accidental or pocket dials to 911 will increase. The new callback system will help manage this increased volume by automatically following up on quick hang-up calls; the system will provide callers with options to reconnect with a 911 call taker or indicate if the call was accidental,” it adds.
E-Comm explains how this process works.
If a 911 call disconnects almost immediately before it reaches a call taker, the system will automatically call back, using the ten-digit number that made the call.
Callers will then hear a recorded message and can press 1 to reach 911 or press 3 to indicate that it was an accident.
“If unanswered, a second automated callback will be placed.”
You can learn more about the callback system on the E-Comm website.