National Public Safety Communicators Week April 12–18, 2026

RECOGNIZING THE WORK OF THE FIRST FIRST-RESPONDERS
National Public Safety Communicators Week April 12–18, 2026

[NORTH BAY,ON] Ambulance Communications Officers in our region receive more than 36,000 medical and fire calls a year for assistance. On-duty 24/7, 365 days a year, this work is critical to the chain of survival—but the staff performing this vital function are rarely visible.

The North Bay Central Ambulance Communications Centre (CACC) is joining Emergency Communications Centres throughout Canada in celebrating the second week of April (April 12-18, 2026) as National Public Safety Communicators Week. This week honours the thousands of men and women who answer emergency calls, dispatch emergency professionals and equipment and render life-saving assistance to citizens.

Often referred to as the first, first responders, communicators have a challenging task. It is imperative that the call taker determine what happened and how to help before responders arrive. Because every emergency begins here.  Before the lights flash and the vehicles roll, there is a voice on the other end of the line- steady, focused, and ready to guide someone through one of the worst moments of their life.  The ‘Thin Gold Line’ represents the people who are always heard but rarely seen.

Champlain Park Microburst

A severe storm, including a microburst, struck Samuel de Champlain Provincial Park on June 21, 2025, causing extensive damage and forcing the park’s closure. The storm resulted in significant tree damage, with tens of thousands of trees reportedly down, and hazardous conditions throughout the park.  Photos of responders at the scene were prominent. 

As the Emergency Communications center for both EMS and Fire in this area, 911 communicators at the North Bay CACC received 206 calls between 9:13 pm Saturday and 2 pm Sunday.  During that time, two call takers received 115 calls in less than a three hour span before midnight.

Communicators went from call to call, determining the exact location of the patient or trapped person, entering the information into the Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system where the dispatcher would then relay that critical information to the responding EMS and Fire personnel. 

While most emergency calls take only a few minutes, in a crisis it can feel much longer and the call taker must remain calm when most callers are anxious, distraught or confused.

Like a well-choreographed routine, the call taker obtains specific medical information to provide pre-arrival instructions to the caller.  In addition, their information assists the dispatcher in quickly determining if Primary or Advanced Care Paramedics are required to respond and if the fire department and/or police are needed for assistance. Moments later, the next 911 line rings and the process is repeated.

Emergency Medical Services Exemplary Service Medal

On April 6, 2025, two members of the North Bay Central Ambulance Communications Centre were honoured at a formal Ceremony in Brampton, Ontario for their exceptional service in the field of pre-hospital emergency medical care.

Jennifer Durham-Gagne and Greg Douglas were honoured to be among the EMS 911 dispatchers in Ontario to be recognized with an Emergency Medical Services Exemplary Service Medal.  Medals were presented to 26 recipients by Ontario Health Minister and Deputy Premiere Sylvia Jones, Deputy Minister of Health, Deborah Richardson (also a proud resident of Northern Ontario).  James Romain, Director of Emergency Health Program Management and Delivery and Chief Troy Cheseboro, First Vice-President of the Ontario Association of Paramedic Chiefs were also assisted in the presentation, attended by representatives of EMS and CACCs from throughout Ontario.

NG911

As of 10:00 pm January 12, 2026, North Bay CACC was live on Next Generation 911 (NG 911)!

After a long few months of preparation and training we are proud to be the first Central Ambulance Communications Centre in Northern Ontario and the third in the Province to be operating on NG 911.

Next Generation 9-1-1 is a modern, digital network designed for today’s technology. Old copper telephone lines are replaced by new fibre optic lines.

Upgrading to Next Generation 9-1-1 helps ensure every call is supported by the best technology available.

In an emergency, continue to call 9-1-1 as usual. There is no change to how you call 9-1-1 or how calls are handled.

North Bay CACC staff are fortunate to have an outstanding working relationship with the Ontario Provincial Police Provincial Communications Centre in North Bay, the North Bay Police 911 Communication Center, and Northern911, whom they collaborate with daily.

 

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About the North Bay CACC

The North Bay CACC is a department of the North Bay Regional Health Centre located off-site.  Under the direction of the CACC Manager, the North Bay CACC is staffed daily by Team Leaders, full time and part time Ambulance Communications Officers and support staff, including an Operations Supervisor, Liaison & Policy Officer, Program Assistant, as well as an administration clerk.

On duty CACC staff manage 23 EMS Resources at 10 EMS stations, 9 First Response Teams and 20 Volunteer Fire Departments.  This includes Primary Care and Advanced Care Paramedics, Supervisor units and any air ambulances resources that are in the area.  Behind the dispatchers are an administrative staff that support and assist their work, from payroll, to policy writing, to computer maintenance and upgrades.

There are 58 Fire Departments in the geographical area covered by the North Bay CACC.  Most Fire Departments maintain a tiered response agreement with EMS, which dictates when the CACC should notify them to respond to assist with medical calls, off road rescues or motor vehicle collisions.

CACC coordinates the movement of patients to and from the North Bay Regional Health Centre, West Nipissing General Hospital, Mattawa General Hospital, Temiskaming District Hospital, Blanche River Health Englehart site as well as the Blanche River Health Kirkland Lake site within the catchment area as well as the bordering hospitals of Health Sciences North, Timmins and District Hospital, Huntsville Hospital and Centre de Santé Timiskaming to name a few.

With the assistance of the Ornge Communications Centre, emergency calls and non-emergency long distance patient transfers are coordinated with both helicopter and fixed wing air ambulance resources.  There are five hospital helipads, 14 community helipads and three airports within our catchment area.  During daylight hours, an air ambulance helicopter can choose to land directly at the scene of a serious incident if there is a sufficient clearing.

The CACC has a Quality Assurance program which ensures that calls are constantly reviewed to maintain a high quality of service mandated by the Ministry of Health.

The North Bay Central Ambulance Communications Centre is committed to ensuring a high level of communications services are provided to both the citizens of Ontario, the ambulance services, fire department and police services at all times.