The City of Kamloops signed a five-year contract with Kelowna for firefighting dispatch services.

The $3 million deal was struck earlier this year for call handling and “computer-aided dispatch” for Kamloops Fire Rescue, according to a staff memo to Kamloops city council dated April 27.

City of Kelowna and Kamloops Fire Rescue refused to provide more details about the contract and the joint services agreement, telling iNFOnews.ca they would jointly announce the deal next week.

Kamloops assistant fire chief Scott Johnson did, however, say the department is not outsourcing its dispatching service.

Though neither city would provide more details, it may be part of their transition to so-called Next Generation 9-1-1, an internet-based upgrade to emergency services.

The transition is federally mandated, with telecommunications companies given a 2027 deadline, and would give emergency dispatch services access to more precise GPS locations, while callers would be able to send text messages, images and videos to 9-1-1 dispatchers.

Both cities have started down the path of the transition already.

While Kamloops council sought a $2 million grant from the Union of BC Municipalities to fund equipment upgrades last year, Kelowna already got $3 million from the same source in 2023 for the transition.

Earlier this year, the Kamloops fire chief said the Next Gen 9-1-1 system would be locally operational by June.