Saskatoon police detail busy day for 911 dispatchers

Saskatoon police revealed a busy day at the city’s 911 call centre as officers sat in for the first Friday of July.

Police detailed the call centre’s experiences with a series of tweets throughout the day. In less than 10 hours, 144 calls were dispatched for service while another 14 calls sat waiting in the queue as officers began their short stay.

That seems to be a typical day for dispatchers in 2019. In the first 186 days of the year, the centre has taken 43,896 911 calls, good enough for an average of 237 each day.

Those numbers don’t delve into the multitude of non-emergency calls that are sent in each day. Police said an average of 455 calls that aren’t considered an emergency come in daily.

By the numbers: In the 186 days so far of 2019, call takers have answered 43,896 9-1-1 calls. That's an average of 237 every day. Compare that to an average of 455 non-emergency calls received each day. #TheMoreYouKnow #YXEonCall

— Saskatoon Police (@SaskatoonPolice) July 5, 2019

Police also want to remind people that anytime someone calls 911 and hangs up, dispatchers are required by law to call the number back to ensure the person is safe.

We just received a 911 call, but the caller hung up. Whenever that happens, we have to call back to make sure the person is safe. A REMINDER that if you accidentally dial 911, stay on the line! #YXEonCall

— Saskatoon Police (@SaskatoonPolice) July 5, 2019

Police said they received more than 180 call between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Friday.

There was also a large amount of people calling for non-urgent matters, like asking what the non-emergency number is. Dispatchers told police those types of calls are the most frequent calls into the call centre.

Then there’s the dumbfounding calls the centre receives. One caller dialed 911 to ask what the date was.

This isn't a joke, folks. Someone just called 911 and asked what the date was. #YXEonCall. pic.twitter.com/6mMe8GyKPW

— Saskatoon Police (@SaskatoonPolice) July 6, 2019

It was shaping up to be a busy overnight period as Saskatoon police ended their series of tweets for the night. Between 3 p.m. and 10 p.m., the call centre received and dispatched 129 calls. That number does not include the number of calls taken where an officer was not dispatched.

In a 24-hour period on Thursday, Dispatchers received 321 calls.