E-Comm Lower Mainland non-emergency phone lines back up after outage
Posted July 16, 2022 4:49 pm.
Last Updated July 16, 2022 9:07 pm.
Police and fire non-emergency lines on the Lower Mainland are back up after an hours-long outage Saturday.
E-Comm said around 1 p.m. that an “ongoing technical issue” had made its non-emergency lines unavailable, adding people should report any non-urgent crime online.
The outage did not affect 9-1-1 service.
Service was restored around 7:30 p.m., according to a tweet from the agency.
“Police & Fire non-emerg lines for E-Comm’s Lower Mainland dispatch partners are now operational,” a post reads.
“At this time we continue to ask people to file non-urgent crime reports online if possible, as techs continue to monitor the stability of the lines.”
Update #3: Police & Fire non-emerg lines for E-Comm’s Lower Mainland dispatch partners are now operational. At this time we continue to ask people to file non-urgent crime reports online if possible, as techs continue to monitor the stability of the lines. (1/2)
— E-Comm 9-1-1 (@EComm911_info) July 17, 2022
E-Comm is responsible for answering 99 per cent of B.C.’s 911 calls. However, dispatchers also respond to much of the province’s non-emergency calls.
“If you have to wait to speak with a non-emergency call taker, it’s because our call takers are responding to 9-1-1 emergency calls. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we help people in life-threatening situations first,” the E-Comm website reads, in part.
The agency notes its caller takers and dispatchers “are a vital link in emergency response,” adding they are responsible for coordinating between callers and first responders.
