Yukon's 911 system inadequate for those hard of hearing, speech impaired, says resident

It's been seven years since basic 911 was introduced in the Yukon, but some residents are still unable to effectively use the service.

Gerard Tremblay, a Whitehorse resident who is hard of hearing, is unable to speak out loud. CBC News interviewed Tremblay through a sign language interpreter.

He said he has repeatedly requested that the Yukon government offer a text option for contacting 911.

"When they first started talking about setting up 911 here I said 'please set up the text,'" Tremblay explained. "We've had 911 for a long time now. I contacted them before they even set up 911 to do this. They didn't."

Tremblay said he once had a "close call" accident a few years ago in which his truck rolled over. He said help could have been expedited if he had the ability to text for help.

"The person who could hear was unconscious and I couldn't contact 911. A school bus eventually came along and saw us," Tremblay explained.

"I couldn't communicate with them because I'm deaf. A bunch of people that could hear were discussing what was going on and finally someone called 911. If nobody had come along, I don't know what I would have done."

Many deaf and hard of hearing callers must still use a TTY or tele-typewriter device or a telecommunications device to contact 911.

Tremblay simply says it doesn't work.

"It's an old system," he explained.

"It's like 50 years old. To be honest, I threw my TTY out. It, in general, takes a really long time. It's a huge machine. It goes to Toronto to a relay operator and then they have to contact the person who I'm calling. 911 is for emergency situations, so do you have the time to waste on that?"

Tremblay also says the TTY is only compatible with a landline.

Bell offers a relay service for 911 calls but Tremblay says it only works with an internet connection. 

Kathryn Hallett, a spokesperson from Yukon government's Community Services Department said the government is working closely with the CRTC and service providers to implement Next Generation 9-1-1 services.