Stay informed with the LNN Daily Newsletter
The Taber Police Service station (Lethbridge News Now)

Taber Police and RCMP received over 700 false 911 calls in 2019

Jul 28, 2020 | 6:38 AM

TABER, AB – Taber Police and RCMP are reminding residents to use 911 responsibly.

The services saw over 700 911 calls in 2019 that were made without any sign of an emergency, by mistake, or without the phone owner’s knowledge.

In a social media post, Taber Police cited two common reasons for this.

· iPhone Emergency SOS: Newer iPhones are equipped with an auto call feature that will call 911 if the user presses the power button five times quickly. This can occur when a phone is placed in a bag, cup holder, pocket with keys or in the hands of a child. Taber Police noted that this feature can be turned off by going to the settings page, emergency SOS and disabling auto call. This feature is also on the Apple Watch, and can be disabled as well, through the Watch app or on the watch’s settings.

· Children playing with old phones: Phones without SIM cards are still capable of calling 911. Taber Police said children tend to hang up when they hear a 911 call take answer the phone. “This makes it difficult to confirm if there is an emergency or not, and where the caller is specifically located,” said Taber Police. TPS suggests taking the battery out of an old phone, if possible or turning it to airplane mode, if a child wants to play with the phone.

If you accidentally dial 911, it’s important to stay on the line and explain to the call taker that it was a mistake, to avoid caution a panicked situation.