4 - Friday, July 14, 1989 - North Shore News SERVICE TO BEGIN MAY 13, 1990 N. Shore to get 911 emergency number JUST DIAL 911. That’s all North Shore residents and 20 Lower Mainland municipalities will have to do to contact police, fire or ambulance as of May 13, 1990, when the Greater Vancouver Regional District’s enhanced emergency telephone service comes into ef- fect. The three-digit code system will mean that local residents no longer enhanced 91! system will connect the entire region with a central dispatch centre at the Vancouver Main Street police station. Seconds after a call is received, a screen in front of a specially-train- ed operator flashes the address and phone number of the caller, in case he cannot be understocd. “People tend to panic in an emergency,’’ said Elsie. ‘The enhanced system can tell the oper- Photo submitted VANCOUVER Police Department Communications Officer Charlotte Spencer shows (ieft to right) GVRD chairman Gil Blair, Vancouver Chief Constable Bod &cewart and Provincial Secretary Bill Reid how the 911 emergency phor. : system works. have to dial the existing seven-digit provincial emergency services number to have an ambulance dispatched, or the local police or fire departments’ individual emergency numbers. Under the new system, police, RCMP, fire and ambulance will be linked to the 911 service. ‘It (911) is a simple number that everyone can re:tember,’’ said GVRD spokesman Bud Fisie. Beginning next JUNIORS May, the “HURRY ON (3/,5\, DOWN!” to Courthouse West \> ° 987-1100 ot Why PRO 2 PAT KELLY International tennis coach and his assistant JASON 3 HOURS PER DAY MON.-SAT. July 10-15, 17-22, 24-29 duly 31 - Aug. 5, etc. Classes are limited to 12 students per session. Leave name, phone number and info at desk. Other Programs Availabie Ask Reg ator exactly where the call is com- ing from."’ Once emergency service needed he is immediately linked with the closest appropriate service -— fire, police or ambulance. At that point the operator can continue to monitor the call to determine if further assistance is required. Telephone links between the centre in Vancouver and emergen- cy services throughout the region ye — ge 7 tee - Take the caller specifies the. are ‘‘dedicated’' lines, said Elsie, which means that a line is always free. Only Vancouver and Richmond are currently hooked up to the 911 system. Both municipalities will upgrade their operations to tie into the newer enhanced system. Bowen Island was originally ex- cluded from the system because island residents have no street ad- dresses available for display on the 911 dispatch screen. But Elsie said island telephone poles will be numbered so that when a call comes in, the nearest pole to the area where the person is calling from will light up on the opera- tor’s screen, The idea for the North Shore to get a 911 number was first discuss- ed seven years ago, but was deem- ed too costly at the time. Elsic said the system became more attractive when costs fell and equipment was dramatically improved. All three municipalities agreed in principle to adopt the 911 system last year. Operating cost for the entire system is $1.6 million. The provin- cial government has contributed $690,395 to help fund the service. Residents will be levied on average an additional $1.15 per person annually, which will be in- cluded in the GVRD levy and ap- pear on municipal tax notices once the system is in place. Bill Sass, president of the North Shore branch of the Senior Citi- zens Association of B.C., said it is too early to say whether the new system will be better than the cur- Tent one. “Until it has been proven to work, I’m extremely skeptical. We should wait and see what other models produce first.’’ He added that as a general rule, “Seniors resist anything that peo- ple tell them will save them more but will cost them more.”’ Elsie says he hasn’t received any negative response about the system so far. ‘‘Most people are saying it’s about time.” 5 minutes and Crossover to VANCOUVER JEEP EAGLE LTD. We'll make it worth your while with over 150 Jeeps to choose from and B.C.'s Best Prices! Call naw or see our selection at: 687-JEEP (687-5337) 1577 MAIN at TERMINAL (next to McDonalds) IMPAIRED DRIVING Ardagh Hunter Turner Barristers & Solicitors #300-1401 Lonsdale Ave., North Vancouver 986-4366 Free Initial Consultation 4 “Afternoon Flight” Oil. 24x36" Exhibition of paintings from around the world by NORMAN KELLY 2022 Park Reyal South, West Vancouver 926-2615 CONSERVATION, EVALUATIONS, CUSTOM FRAMING Leanna has been delivering North Shore News papers in the upper Lonsdale area for 2% years on Sundays and for the past year on Fridays as well. She delivers 156 papers each day. Leanna is attending Balmoral School where her favorite subjects are Art, Math, English and Social Studies. She also likes to play volleyball, basketball and baseball. During the summer vacation Leanna is taking a drama course. When not busy with this she takes her Newfoundland dog, Teddy, for long walks, spends time with friends and talking to them on the phone, and going to the shopping malls to look for clothes and accessories. She is particularly interested in these as she aims to be a Fashion Designer in the future. With her earnings, Leanna has bought a synthesiser which she enjoys playing, and also spends money on going to movies as well as saving. We thank Leanna for being our Star Carrier this week and for a job well done. rat sre 6 ts sara tn mre WERT NTE ‘north Shore DISTRIBUTION DEPARTMENT 986-1337