Modernizing an emergency line with artificial intelligence does not require replacing the phone system or the CAD. You add an AI layer on top of what already works: it answers every call on the first ring, resolves the ones that are not emergencies and, in real emergencies, transcribes and fills in the CAD while the human operator keeps making the decisions. The safe path is to measure the line with your own data, test the AI on the center's own recorded calls, integrate it without replacing systems and scale in phases, with everything logged and auditable.
Why are so many emergency lines being modernized?
Because call volume outpaces staff, and much of that volume is not emergencies. In Bogotá, Línea 123 receives more than 22,000 calls a day, handled by more than 360 operators, and about 70% are improper calls: silent calls, pranks and misdials. In Ecuador, ECU 911 reported that 48% of communications received between March 12 and April 20, 2020 were false.
Lines are also changing shape. Bogotá added video calls, silent chat and geolocation, and the next steps mentioned include developing AI algorithms to categorize alerts, always with human supervision. In Peru, where the Police 105, Firefighters 116 and SAMU 106 lines coexist, 911 began operating in a test phase as a single number in Metropolitan Lima and Callao.
Every country has its own number and its own reality. These figures are useful references, but they do not replace measuring your own line.
What can AI do on an emergency line?
Before choosing technology, map each operational problem to a concrete capability:
- Calls waiting at peak hours → automatic answering on the first ring, 24/7, with natural conversation and no "press 1" menus.
- Too many improper calls → the AI resolves and closes pranks, questions and misdials, and records the reason for each closure.
- Operators typing while listening → live transcription and automatic CAD entry.
- Information lost in chaotic calls → detection of sounds (gunshots, screams, breaking glass, vehicle impacts) and emotions (fear, panic, anger).
- Uneven quality across shifts → protocol guidance: next question, urgency classification and recommended dispatch, all auditable.
- Tourists and migrants who don't speak Spanish → two-way translation without an interpreter.
How do you modernize an emergency line, step by step?
1. Measure the line with your own data
Gather at least three months of data: calls per hour, time to answer, abandonment, share of improper calls by type, handling time and time until the incident is in the CAD. That is your baseline; without it you cannot prove improvement.
2. Define what the AI does and what people decide
Write the rule before you buy: the AI can answer, filter, transcribe and suggest; a person decides in every real emergency. Also define when a call goes straight to an operator.
3. Inventory what already exists
Phone system, CAD, call-handling protocols, recordings and dispatch agencies (national or municipal police, firefighters, ambulances). The goal is to connect AI to that infrastructure, not to replace it.
4. Test on the center's own real calls
Ask for a pilot using your center's recordings whose outcomes you already know. You can compare what the AI did with what actually happened, with no risk to live operations.
5. Integrate without replacing
Connect the AI to the existing phone system and CAD. Decide where it runs: in the cloud or inside your own command center, according to your data policy.
6. Roll out in phases
Start with one call type, shift or site, train operators and supervisors, and expand only when the indicators support it.
7. Audit and adjust
Regularly review automatic closures, transcriptions and protocol suggestions. Every decision should be traceable.
Does AI replace operators?
It shouldn't. AI absorbs the repetitive load so operators can spend their time on real emergencies, but a person must be in charge of every emergency. Be wary of any proposal that promises "dispatch without humans."
Where do the recordings stay, and what legal framework applies?
Emergency calls contain personal and sometimes health data. Ask where calls are processed and stored, who can access them and whether every access is logged. Each institution must comply with its country's applicable legal framework on personal data, public procurement and emergency services; validate the design with your legal team.
What should you ask a vendor before signing?
- Does it work with our current phone system and CAD, or does it require replacing them?
- Can it run inside our own command center?
- Who decides in a real emergency: the AI or the operator?
- How accurate is the transcription, and how is that verified?
- Are protocol suggestions and automatic closures auditable?
- Is there a pilot with our own calls before we sign?
How does Axentra OmniCall help?
OmniCall is Axentra's AI for emergency call centers, designed to work alongside what the center already has:
- Answers every call on the first ring, 24/7, with natural conversation and no phone menus.
- Resolves and closes non-emergency calls (pranks, questions, misdials) and records the reason.
- Copilot in real emergencies: live transcription with 97% accuracy and automatic CAD entry in under 2 seconds from what is said to what appears in the CAD.
- Compatible with the existing CAD (Tyler, Hexagon, Motorola or the institution's own system) and with the current phone system.
- Detects sounds and emotions and provides auditable protocol guidance: next question, urgency classification and recommended dispatch.
- Two-way translation: callers speak their language (for example English, Portuguese, Chinese or French), the operator reads it in Spanish, and the caller hears the reply in a natural voice in their own language.
- Does not replace operators: a person stays in charge of every emergency.
- Runs in the cloud or in the institution's own command center.
There are two low-risk pilot options: replay 10 of the center's recorded calls with known outcomes as if they were live, or get a phone number with the system ready for your operators to test.
Next step
If your ministry, police force or mayor's office is planning to modernize its emergency line, start by measuring and testing with your own calls. Let's talk about an OmniCall pilot for your center.