Emergency response

Contact police and/or ambulance in the case of an emergency when violence has occurred, when there is a life-threatening situation, or when you or others are in imminent danger.

If you live in an area with 9-1-1 emergency service

  • When you dial 9-1-1, your phone call is answered by a professionally trained Emergency Communicator who will connect you to Ambulance, Police or Fire.
  • Remain calm and speak clearly.
  • Identify which emergency service you require. (Ambulance, Police or Fire).
  • Be prepared to answer the following questions:
    • What is the problem?
    • What is your location, address and closest major intersection?
    • What is your name and telephone number?
  • Do not hang up. The Emergency Communicator will dispatch the emergency service you require and may ask you for more information.
  • The 9-1-1 telephone system has an automatic location identification system, which tells the Emergency Communicator your address and telephone number as soon as you make your 9-1-1 call.
  • On a business or office phone, check to see if you need to dial an outside line before dialing 9-1-1.
  • On a cellular phone dial 9-1-1 and tell the Emergency Communicator your exact location, including the city or town.
  • At a pay telephone no money is needed to dial 9-1-1.
  • To access T.T.Y. dial 9-1-1 and press the space bar until a response is received.
  • If you are not able to talk further (as it may alert the abuser or endanger you), leave the phone line open.
  • This feature may not be available with some cell phones; however processes are currently being put in place so that Emergency Communicators can locate calls from most cell phones with greater accuracy.

Internet based 9-1-1 calls

Internet-based phone calls, also known as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), may endanger lives because 9-1-1 calls can potentially be routed to the wrong emergency call centre in a different city or country.

Subscribers to Internet-based phone services should make sure their Internet provider gives access to local 9-1-1 emergency communicators and that the service can display their address information to the local 9-1-1 emergency call centre. Otherwise, emergency communicators will have trouble locating you during an emergency and be delayed from providing the help you need.

If you live in an area where 9-1-1 is NOT available

  • Call the Operator by dialing “O”, tell them it’s an emergency, and ask them to connect you with the nearest police station and/or ambulance service.
  • Memorize or have at hand the direct telephone number of the local police service. These numbers are in the front pages of phone books.  Dial the police yourself and tell them it is an emergency.

When you have immediate concerns about safety, call the police