Yukon moves closer to territory-wide 911 service

The Yukon government has opened a new RCMP call centre in the Emergency Response Centre. The building is equipped to handle 911 calls from around the territory.

"This facility is the nerve centre for RCMP operations in the territory," said Yukon RCMP commanding officer Peter Clark at the opening of the facility Tuesday morning. 

"Employees working in this room have a vital role in responding to the public and supporting the safety of first responders across the Yukon."

The centre has new technology that will allow the RCMP to take more 911 calls when the service is expanded to all Yukon communities.

"We get the calls, we process them, we access what is going on and the safety concerns for the person that is calling, and also the police officers that are going to be responding. And we call them out to go attend that scene," said Gayleen Shoemaker, the RCMP's Unit Commander.

"It's a big job for us to gather as much information as possible for them to respond safely."

Right now, 911 service in Yukon is only available in Whitehorse.

The territorial government is providing money to hire and train additional RCMP operators to staff the new call centre.

If all goes as planned, 911 service should work anywhere in Yukon where there are land-lines or cell service, by the end of this summer.