The province’s primary 911 call centre, E-Comm, is sharing some of the worst nuisance calls it received this year.
The list of the top 10 worst calls was released on Friday, and marks the 10th time E-Comm has compiled its nuisance list.
The call centre is reminding residents that 911 should only be called in an emergency, such as if someone’s health, safety or property is in danger, or if a crime is in process.
Calls shouldn’t be made for things like reporting potholes and food delivery orders taking too long to arrive, which were among the worst offenders this year.
“No matter how absurd a call might be on the surface, we have to treat every 9-1-1 call as an emergency, until we can confidently determine otherwise,” said Alaina Milicevic, police call taker at E-Comm.
“Every second we spend fielding questions about AirBnB reservations or complaints about UberEats orders, is time that could otherwise be dedicated to helping someone in a life-threatening emergency situation,” she said.
“We can’t help you with consumer complaints on 9-1-1, but reaching out to an appropriate customer service agent, or filing a report with the Better Business Bureau might help resolve your issue.”
E-Comm says it’s very worst nuisance call of the year was someone asking for directions home from the Drake concert in Vancouver.
Other nuisance calls included someone losing their nose ring down a shower drain, someone losing their cellphone, and someone complaining that a traffic light was taking too long to turn green.
The top 10 worst calls, with number one representing the most egregious call, can be found below:
10. The barber gave them a bad haircut
9. Their McDonalds order was taking too long
8. complain about a pothole
7. They couldn’t find their cell phone
6. A burger joint wouldn’t let them in before opening
5. Their UberEats order was taking too long
4. Their AirBnB host cancelled their reservation
3. They lost a nose ring down the shower drain
2. The traffic light was taking too long to turn green
1. To ask for directions home from the Drake concert
If you are in an emergency that requires you to call 911, E-Comm recommends that you know your exact location, stay on the line until you can share all details – or, if you accidentally called 911, make sure you stay on the line and tell call takers it was an accident.
SEE ALSO: Noisy neighbours? Holiday parties not a reason to call 911, says E-Comm
Adam Chan
