911 Service Restored

The 911 system in Nova Scotia is now restored. Bell Aliant is still investigating the cause of the disruption.

Today, January 31, at about 7 a.m., the Nova Scotia Emergency Management Office was notified by Bell Aliant that its 911 service was disrupted across Nova Scotia.

Full access was restored shortly after 9 a.m. Mobile radio for emergency responders was not impacted during this disruption.

“Nova Scotians can be assured that 911 service has been restored across Nova Scotia. I want to thank our emergency partners for their immediate response to ensure alternate systems were in place and operating fully so calls could be answered quickly for help in an emergency,” said John Lohr, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and Minister responsible for the Emergency Management Office. “This disruption was extremely concerning, and we are working diligently with Bell to understand what happened and what led to the disruption to ensure something like this doesn’t happen again.”

The Provincial Coordination Centre at the Emergency Management Office will remain activated for monitoring today. This ensures key partners are in attendance at the centre to monitor service and work through any issues.

A significant 911 service disruption is extremely rare. If this occurs, in case of emergency, Nova Scotians are asked to contact local emergency service providers:

• Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM): 1-902-490-5020
• Cape Breton Regional Municipality (CBRM): 1-902-563-5151
• Cape Breton Island excluding CBRM: 1-800-803-7267
• mainland Nova Scotia (excluding HRM and Kentville): 1-800-803-7267
• Kentville: 1-902-678-2100
• Emergency Health Services (EHS) toll-free number: 1-888-346-9999.

People are encouraged to write down these numbers or save them on their phone to ensure quick access in case of a future disruption.