Maria Canton
Northern News Services

Iqaluit (Jan 24/00) - Emergency dispatchers don't want to leave their office at the fire hall for a new, state-of-the-art communications centre.

So says Neville Wheaton, Iqaluit's director of safety and emergency services, who told councillors at a recent meeting that his employees are concerned about moving to a new $400,000 centre at the RCMP detachment.

The centre, which is paid for by the RCMP and scheduled to be ready in May, will be in a room currently being renovated in the detachment.

"Based on discussions with the employees, most of their concerns surround being relieved for breaks and lunch," said Wheaton.

"One issue is we've been short staffed, but we have trained firefighters who can fill in for the dispatchers.

"On the surface it seems good, but with the upgraded equipment we're asking for I don't see the service being any better (at the detachment) than (at the fire hall)."

However, Inspector Dan Fudge, who presented the RCMP's proposal to council, says Wheaton's concerns are minor considering the centre will be equipped with the latest and most modern in communication equipment.

"We are very fortunate to have persuaded Ottawa to fund this proposal. Because we are a new territory they feel we should be up to the same minimum standards as the rest of the provinces and territories," said Fudge.

"We're offering to move the dispatch services to the new centre at absolutely no charge."

The new communication centre will contain equipment capable of recording and playing back messages instantaneously, as well as automatically notifying dispatchers and RCMP of emergencies in all other Nunavut communities.

Fudge says the immediate replay feature will aid in calls where the caller and dispatcher do not speak the same language.

"If the caller speaks only Inuktitut and the dispatcher doesn't speak Inuktitut, the message can instantly be played back to someone who does speak Inuktitut," said Fudge.

Some councillors at the meeting raised concerns about the cost of moving the emergency dispatch services back to the fire hall should the town not be awarded the contract in the future.

But Fudge guaranteed that the RCMP would not only move the services to the detachment at no charge, they would also move them back at no charge.

A motion was passed to discuss the issue further at a Feb. 2 development, works and public safety committee meeting and to bring it forward again at the next council meeting on Feb. 8.