The Vancouver Police Department is  investigating why it took its officers more than an hour to respond to a 911 call about a suicide attempt that ended with the death of a mentally ill man last September.

When Michael Sproule's aunt called 911 to say he planned to kill himself, the civilian dispatcher failed to give it the highest priority and no officers were assigned, police Chief Jamie Graham said Wednesday.

Police Chief Jamie Graham says the dispatcher was fired and two police oficers are still under investigation after the botched 911 call.
(CBC)

An hour later, Sproule himself called police to say he had cut his wrists.

Again, the dispatcher failed to upgrade the call to the highest priority —something required by policy — because there were already 14 calls backed up at the time, Graham told reporters.

When police and paramedics were dispatched 26 minutes later, they arrived to find Sproule barricaded in his apartment.

By the time they forced their way in, Sproule had bled to death.

Graham said the dispatcher was fired after an internal investigation concluded he had mishandled the call.

A separate investigation into the behaviour of police officers who responded to the call is also underway, Graham said.

A coroner's inquest into Sproule's death concluded it was a unique occurrence and there was no evidence to suggest changes were needed in emergency policies and procedures.