Record number of 911 calls at Montreal’s Grande Bibliothèque: reports
Posted December 27, 2023 11:36 am.
Last Updated December 27, 2023 12:17 pm.
Montreal’s Grande Bibliothèque is seeing an increase in security threats.
According to documents obtained by LaPresse, calls to police have increased more than ever.
In 2022, the 911 emergency service was requested 129 times.
These calls were directed to the police (78), ambulance services (40) or the fire department (11).
These 78 calls to police, are being compared to 52 in 2019 and 37 in 2018.
As a pilot project, the Quebec government allocated $140,000 to integrate the services of a psychosocial worker for a year to help support staff at the library.
According to data obtained by LaPresse, the budget allocated to security at the library has continued to increase since 2013.
The Grande Bibliothèque is located a few steps from the Berri-UQAM station and Émilie-Gamelin Park, where issues of homelessness, drug addiction and mental health are present.
The Grande Bibliothèque is collaborating on security issues with the Table de concertation du Faubourg Saint-Laurent and community organizations like Specter de rue and the Old Brewery Mission.
