Emergency 911 calls have increased by more than 70% since 2021, with the average number of calls increasing from 4,964 per month to 8,300 per month this year.
Home Affairs Minister Sabrina Turner, in a budget-related speech in Parliament Monday, noted that in 2021, the emergency communications centre received a total of 58,372 calls. That number rose to 66,766 in 2022 (or an average of 5,288 a month), and then to 99,660 calls between January and August this year.
Turner stated that of 8,300 calls per month this year, approximately 4,000 resulted in emergency services being dispatched.
She said the increase in calls between 2021 and 2023 represented a “remarkable 71% increase in calls in just two years”.
She added that this “demonstrated how beneficial the recent upgrades made to the Department of Public Safety Communications has been” and the importance of maintaining the department’s computer-aided dispatch (CAD) system and Cayman’s national CCTV network in the coming financial year.
Turner said enhancing the CAD system had resulted in improving the handling of calls and dispatch accuracy, and reducing response times.
“Also, as a result of the increased demand and constant reliance on the Department of Public Safety Communications, a top priority is the maintenance of our cutting-edge communication infrastructure… which includes completion of a new communication tower in Northward, acquisition of state-of-the-art radio and dispatch consoles, and the necessary software updates.”
She added, “These improvements will enable us to continue responding swiftly and effectively during emergencies, thus saving lives and reducing property damage.”
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