Widespread disruptions to 911 emergency telephone service struck multiple Canadian provinces in the early morning hours of Thursday, September 17, 2026, affecting residents in Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Manitoba. Police services across the affected regions warned the public that some callers, particularly those on cellular networks, may be unable to connect to emergency dispatchers, and urged residents to use non-emergency lines, landlines, or Wi-Fi calling as alternatives.

In Ontario, Toronto Police reported at 4:30 a.m. local time that their 911 line was unable to receive calls, while the Ontario Provincial Police issued warnings of intermittent outages across parts of the province. Durham Regional Police, along with forces in Kingston, Peel, and York regions, reported similar problems. By approximately 6 a.m., many services confirmed their lines were being restored, though the OPP was still reporting issues as late as 7:30 a.m. and said it was working with service providers to expedite full restoration.

In Quebec, the Sûreté du Québec attributed the disruption to a technical issue affecting the transfer of certain calls. Montreal police confirmed they were affected but said service was restored by 4:45 a.m., with Quebec City police and other municipal forces reporting similar timelines. Nova Scotia officials issued a province-wide emergency alert describing the outages as intermittent and affecting parts of Canada broadly, advising residents to seek help directly from nearby police, fire, or medical facilities if 911 remained unavailable. New Brunswick authorities indicated the problem may be related to telecommunications carrier networks.

The cause of the outages had not been officially confirmed as of the time of reporting, and Bell Canada had been contacted for comment but had not yet responded. Authorities emphasized that emergency officers continued to respond to calls for service despite the disruption, and warned the public not to call 911 simply to test the line or seek updates. Investigators and service providers were working to determine the origin of the failure and restore full service across all affected regions.