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'Busy' 911 Meant Woman Couldn't Report Murder

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Cranbrook, BC - A woman who watched her friend get shot and killed couldn't get through to 911 because it was "an unusually busy evening," says the police official responsible for the call centre.

Lynn Neelin tried to call 911 on Dec. 17 after her roommate Tammy Lee Ellis was killed in front of her and another friend.

Ms. Neelin has said she and the friend tried to call 911, but were put on hold and told to stay on the line as all operators were busy. Watch Video

"The night in question we had an unusually busy evening with a high volume of incoming 911 calls, which created a heavy backlog," said Staff Sergeant Troy Gross, who manages the call centre.

"In instances such as these, if an individual from the public calls in they are not put on hold, but I do understand why someone would think they are put on hold," he said.

Staff Sgt. Gross said data from that night are still being analyzed and that he has implemented an internal measure to minimize the risk of the same thing happening in the future.

He said from now on, two operators will handle all 911 incoming calls at all times.

Ms. Ellis's father, Don Michalsky, said he needs to do something and wants to get the problem solved before the same thing happens to someone else.

"All of the grieving is still going to be there for the rest of my life, it's just that I thought I could do something for somebody else, since her life is gone," he said.