Kitchener takes over fire dispatch services in Stratford
Fire services in Stratford will soon be dispatched out of Kitchener.
Kitchener Fire Chief Bob Gilmore says the local department already dispatches for Waterloo, Cambridge and Waterloo Region’s four townships. Now they’re adding the City of Stratford to the list.
“The big reason it’s happening is the CRTC [Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission] is implementing what they call Next Generation 9-1-1 and [for] a lot of the smaller dispatch centres, it’s an exorbitant cost to upgrade their technology,” Gilmore said. “And so it’s trending throughout the province actually that the smaller centres are being absorbed by the bigger regions.”
The province says Next Generation 9-1-1 will allow the public to share more information with 911 dispatchers including text messages and video. It will also give emergency operators and dispatchers the ability to identify the location of a call using GPS coordinates.
Emergency communication centres across Ontario have until March 2025 to transition to the new system.
Last month, the province pledged to spend $78 million on telecommunications infrastructure to help municipalities and emergency response centres make the switch.
Kitchener Fire will get just under $714,000 of that money.
Gilmore says it won’t be a problem for Kitchener to take on Stratford’s call volume.
“Their call volume is approximately 2,400 calls a year. So we’re currently about 32,000 in the region, so we’d go to 34,000 [calls per year].”
Gilmore says employees with Stratford’s dispatch centre have been re-assigned and will not lose their jobs. Kitchener Fire currently has 17 dispatchers.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
‘We made them safer and more fun’: Here’s what’s new about e-scooters
Electric scooters (e-scooters) have been gaining popularity in the capital and this season comes with some changes and updates.
The kids from 'Mrs. Doubtfire' are all SUPER grown up now, and we're not OK
The adorable trio of child actors from the 1993 classic comedy 'Mrs. Doubtfire,' which starred the late and great Robin Williams, are all grown up and looking back on their seminal time together.
Premier Legault reiterates that McGill pro-Palestinian camp must be dismantled
Quebec Premier François Legault reiterated that the pro-Palestinian encampment at McGill University must be dismantled while police remain 'on the lookout for new developments.'
Canadian Auger-Aliassime reaches first Masters final in Madrid with another walkover
Montreal's Felix Auger-Aliassime has advanced to his first ATP Masters final, and he hasn't had to play all that much tennis to do it.
Drew Carey is never quitting 'The Price Is Right'
Drew Carey took over as host of 'The Price Is Right' and hopes he’s there for life. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he told 'Entertainment Tonight' of the job he took over from longtime host Bob Barker in 2007.
The UN warns Sudan's warring parties that Darfur risks starvation and death if aid isn't allowed in
The United Nations food agency warned Sudan's warring parties Friday that there is a serious risk of widespread starvation and death in Darfur and elsewhere in Sudan if they don't allow humanitarian aid into the vast western region.
Two killed after collision with truck on Hwy. 417 near Limoges, Ont.
Ontario Provincial Police say two people were killed after a car and a transport truck collided in the westbound lanes of Highway 417 near Limoges, Ont. on Tuesday afternoon.
Police officer hit by driver of fleeing vehicle in Toronto
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.