Urgences-santé announced Friday on Twitter to receive a large number of calls, asking the population to dial 8-1-1 when life is not in danger.
Posted at 7:09 p.m.
By late Friday afternoon, the situation was back to normal, said Jean-Pierre Rouleau, spokesperson for Urgences-Santé. The snow that fell on Greater Montreal may explain this increase in calls, he said. “There are more falls, often people fall, there are road accidents,” he lists. Road conditions make travel for paramedics slower and more difficult, he adds.
“We are also experiencing a labor shortage,” said Mr. Rouleau. This is in addition to the fact that some employees are missing due to COVID-19. But in this regard, the situation is improving day by day, he says.
Jean-Pierre Rouleau wants to be reassuring all the same. “It’s a bit all these conditions that made it more difficult, but we got through it,” he said. “We respond to the mission,” he adds. The spokesperson recalls that it is better to avoid going out when snow and blowing snow fall on the Metropolis and the surrounding area.