Updates from E-Comm 9-1-1 | 911 in British Columbia

February 2026 Update

We’re pleased to share our monthly update highlighting key activities at E-Comm as we enhance our services for first responder partners and the public. View the PDF version of this update here.

Strong start for emergency call-taking, 9-1-1

Emergency police call-taking reached 93% in the Lower Mainland, and 91% on Vancouver Island (target: 88% of calls answered in 10 seconds). 9-1-1 service saw 98% of calls answered in 5 seconds or less (target: 95%).

Increase in police non-emergency calls

Police non-emergency volumes increased +9% in the Lower Mainland and +6% on Vancouver Island compared to January 2025. Service levels were at 79% for the Lower Mainland and 85% on Vancouver Island (target: 80% within 3 minutes).

Fire service levels continue to exceed targets

Fire call-taking reached 97% in the Lower Mainland (target: 90% of calls answered in 15 seconds), continuing a four-year trend of strong service delivery for partners.

Continued reliability of radio network

4,882,259 radio transmissions were made with the 15,915 radios on E-Comm’s network in January with no disruptions. E-Comm’s Wireless team also completed a major Radio Core upgrade in January, carefully planned and executed with Motorola to keep the radio network fully supported and up to date while minimizing impacts to partner agencies.

Action Plan updates

E-Comm continues to implement the Action Plan in response to the Province’s Independent review. Below are some key recommendations we advanced this month:

Service-based costing model: E-Comm is developing a new model that will clearly show the cost of our services. The model is expected to go to the Board for approval in May 2026 and will be used to inform partners about 2027 levies and the 2027 budget.
Service catalogue and service level targets: Benchmarking work is now complete.
E-Comm continues to work with partners to clearly define the services we provide and the service levels they can expect, with final details expected by fall 2026.
Governance and stakeholder engagement: A structured framework is being finalized for Board review in February 2026. An engagement approach will launch in March, with a focus on key priorities like financial model and service level targets.

Tumbler Ridge emergency response

9-1-1 Queue Agents triage calls: On February 10, E-Comm’s 9-1-1 operators fielded multiple calls for the Tumbler Ridge shooting tragedy, quickly connecting callers with emergency services through the BC RCMP and BCEHS. Our Critical Incident Stress (CIS) teams were engaged to provide support for staff who handled the difficult calls. Our thoughts remain with the family and friends of the victims, the community of Tumbler Ridge, and the emergency services who responded and continue the investigation.

Employer of choice

E-Comm has made the 2026 list of BC’s Top Employers, a designation awarded annually to both public and private sector organizations demonstrating innovation and excellence.

Newly trained call takers

Due to internal movement and promotions amongst our staff, E-Comm has trained a new class of non-emergency call takers and dispatchers. Both groups have officially signed off and will soon be answering calls and dispatching on their own.

Long service recognized

Two E-Comm employees achieved remarkable career milestones this month: Laura, who was integral to the development of the Central Dispatcher role with the Vancouver Police Department, celebrated 45 years of service and John marked 30 years as a police dispatcher. Thank you both for your service!