South Bruce OPP say only two per cent of 911 calls they responded to in 2013 were actual emergencies.
Police are blaming accidental calls, 'pocket dial' calls, kids playing with phones, pranks and phone line problems for tying up emergency lines last year.
South Bruce Insp. Scott Smith said in a statement “In some areas, a 911 call will activate police, fire and ambulance to respond, which creates a significant cost to the rate payers, but the potential harm is far greater. Emergency responders are strategically located to provide the best possible service delivery. If they are delayed responding to a real event by a non-emergent 911 call, the consequences could be very serious for the person or people that need immediate assistance."
Police officers are legally mandated to respond to every 911 call, real or not, and with no information to go on they are sometimes simply responding to an area near a cell phone tower.
From Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2013, South Bruce OPP say they responded to 579 calls to 911, but only 10 of those were actual emergencies.
'Pocket dial' calls accounted for a whopping 56 per cent, or 323 of the non-emergency calls where police responded.
Other non-emergency 911 calls included:
- 22 per cent: misdials - attempting to call 411, an overseas number or programming emergency numbers into an auto dialer
- 14 per cent: small children playing with phones and prank calls made by youth from public pay phones
- seven per cent: caused by a phone line problem later dealt with by the phone company repair crews
Police are encouraging cell phone users to 'Lock it in your pocket' or ensure cell phone keypads are locked to avoid accidental calls to 911.
