The Orangeville Police Service says unintentional or misdialed calls to 9-1- 1 continue to be a cause for concern with the force.

With all 9-1-1 calls in Dufferin County going to Communication Operators at the Orangeville Police Service, resources spent dealing with unintentional or misdialed 9-1-1 calls are having an impact with regards to time spent dealing with these calls and have the potential to put the public at risk.

“When our police service receives a 9-1- 1 call our Communication Operators enact a variety of tasks to ensure that the caller receives the emergency services that are relevant to their particular need,” explained Police Chief Joe Tomei.

“Calls to 9-1-1 that are ultimately found to be unintentional or misdialed calls often require the same time and resources as 9-1- 1 calls for legitimate emergencies.”

In 2011, the Orangeville Police Service received 530 of these 9-1-1 “nuisance” calls.

A large percentage of these calls required police offers to attend the location of the call to confirm that the call was in fact made in error.

“By tying up 9-1-1 phone lines, Communication Operators and responding police officers with these nuisance calls, the risk is that citizens with legitimate emergencies may experience a delay in receiving the services that they require,” said Community Services Officer Constable Scott Davis.

Pocket dials to 9-1- 1 from mobile devices have added to the types of nuisance calls to 9-1-1. Pocket dials happen when a keypad on a mobile device carried in a pocket, purse, backpack, etc. is accidentally pressed. Unintentional 9-1-1 calls are generated from a mobile device and are not intended as emergency calls. Citizens can prevent pocket dials or unintentional 9-1-1 calls by:

 Locking keypads using the keypad lock feature.

 Turning off the 9- 1-1 auto-dial feature, if your mobile device has one.

Such actions do not impact a user’s ability to receive a phone call, but may significantly reduce the chance of a pocket dial.

For more information about this topic and other crime prevention / safety topics contact Cst. Davis at 519-941-2522 ext. 2221 or e-mail scottdavis@orangevillepolice.ca