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What Is CANUTEC? Canada's 24/7 Dangerous Goods Emergency Centre
Its number is printed on shipping documents across the country, and the law names it in multiple reports. Here is what CANUTEC actually is, who answers the phone, and when you are required to call.
Quick answer
CANUTEC is the Canadian Transport Emergency Centre, operated by Transport Canada's Transportation of Dangerous Goods Directorate. Bilingual scientists answer 24/7 at 1-888-CAN-UTEC (226-8832), 613-996-6666, or *666 from a cell phone in Canada, and provide emergency advice during dangerous goods incidents. Part 8 of the TDG Regulations requires calls to CANUTEC for release reports, loss or theft, tampering, and ERAP activations, which is why the centre features in every TDG training course.
What CANUTEC is and who runs it
What the law says
"CANUTEC means the Canadian Transport Emergency Centre of the Department of Transport."
Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations, Section 1.4
Behind that one-line definition sits a federal operations centre run by Transport Canada's Transportation of Dangerous Goods Directorate. It exists for one purpose: when dangerous goods leak, burn, crash, or go missing anywhere in the transport chain, there is a single national number where an expert answers at any hour of the day.
Knowing who runs it is the easy part. The more useful question for anyone in a warehouse or a truck cab is what happens on the other end of the line.
What the scientists on the phone actually do
Transport Canada staffs CANUTEC with bilingual scientists who work around the clock and are trained in emergency response. They do two jobs at once: advising the people at the scene and connecting everyone involved in the incident.
What the government says
"CANUTEC's emergency response advisors provide immediate advice over the phone about the actions to take and to avoid during a dangerous goods emergency. They can also send technical information to local authorities responsible for responding to emergencies by email or fax during an incident."
Transport Canada, Guide for Reporting Dangerous Goods Incidents
Transport Canada's emergency preparedness material describes the range of that technical advice: the chemical, physical, and toxicological properties of the goods, immediate public safety actions, isolation and evacuation distances, potential health effects, protective clothing and decontamination, product instability and incompatibility, mitigation techniques, and basic plume and dispersion analysis. In plain terms, the person on the phone can tell a first responder how far back to move the public and what the chemical will do next.
All that help sits behind three numbers, and one is short enough to remember under stress.
The phone numbers
What the government says
"You can now dial 1-888-CAN-UTEC (226-8832) to reach us. This toll-free number adds itself to our current emergency numbers: 613-996-6666, and *666 from a cell phone in Canada. Our current numbers are still operational and CANUTEC will continue to accept collect calls."
Transport Canada, CANUTEC
| Number | What it is |
|---|---|
| 1-888-CAN-UTEC (1-888-226-8832) | Toll-free emergency line, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week |
| 613-996-6666 | Direct emergency line, collect calls accepted |
| *666 | Shortcut from a cell phone in Canada |
| 613-947-5048 | CANUTEC Registration Services, for consignors registering to use the number on shipping documents |
Save those in your phone before you ever need them. Then learn the part most people get wrong: the law does not route every call to CANUTEC, and the first call after a spill usually goes somewhere else entirely.
When the law requires a call to CANUTEC
After a release or anticipated release on road, rail, or water, Section 8.2 sends the first emergency report to the local authority responsible for responding at that location, which in most of Canada means 911. CANUTEC enters the chain when the incident is serious. Part 8 names it as a required recipient in four reports:
| Report | Section | When |
|---|---|---|
| Release or anticipated release report | 8.4(4) | After an emergency report, when the incident causes a death, treated injuries, an evacuation or shelter in place, a closure, or a compromised container |
| Loss or theft report | 8.16(3) | When listed security-sensitive dangerous goods go missing above the Section 8.16(2) quantities |
| Unlawful interference report | 8.18(2) | As soon as possible after discovering tampering with dangerous goods |
| ERAP implementation report | 8.22 | Each time an approved ERAP is activated to tier 1 or tier 2 |
What the law says
"Each time a person implements an approved ERAP to tier 1 or tier 2, the person must, as soon as possible, make an ERAP implementation report to CANUTEC, at 1-888-CANUTEC (1-888-226-8832) or 613-996-6666."
Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations, Section 8.22
Air transport runs on its own track. Since the June 17, 2026, amendments, air reporting lives in Part 12 of the regulations, sections 12.22 through 12.27, aligned with the ICAO Technical Instructions. Whatever the mode, when you dial, the quality of the advice depends on what you can tell them in the first minute.
What to have ready when you call
Section 8.3 lists the information an emergency report must contain, and it doubles as the checklist for any call about an incident: your name and contact information, the date, time, and geographic location of the release or of the incident that led to an anticipated release, the mode of transport, the shipping name or UN number, the quantity that was in the container before the incident, the estimated quantity released, and the type of incident if applicable, such as a collision, rollover, derailment, overfill, fire, explosion, or load-shift.
Every item on that list sits on the shipping document, which is why the regulations keep it within the driver's reach. If you can read the document to the advisor, you have provided almost everything they need. Not sure what a UN number tells them? Our guide to the 9 classes of dangerous goods explains the system behind it.
CANUTEC and the Emergency Response Guidebook
CANUTEC's reach extends beyond the phone line. Transport Canada's emergency preparedness material notes that the Emergency Response Guidebook, the orange manual that first responders across North America use in the opening minutes of a dangerous goods incident, is developed by Transport Canada through CANUTEC together with the United States, Mexico, and Argentina. The guidebook pairs UN numbers with response guides, so a crew arriving at a rollover can identify the hazard and set initial isolation distances before a specialist is even on the phone.
One more CANUTEC rule matters to every consignor in the country, and it is written directly into the shipping document requirements.
"Three numbers, answered around the clock by scientists: 1-888-CAN-UTEC, 613-996-6666, and *666 from a cell phone in Canada. Save them in your phone today, because nobody wants to search for them beside a leaking drum."
Samira AliCertified Public Health Inspector, 10+ years across Canada and the U.S.
Using CANUTEC's number on your shipping documents
Paragraph 3.5(1)(f) requires every dangerous goods shipping document to carry a 24-hour number where technical information about the goods is available immediately. Many consignors want that number to be CANUTEC's. The regulations allow it, with one strict condition.
What the law says
"The telephone number of a person who is not the consignor, such as CANUTEC, but who is competent to give the technical information required by paragraph (1)(f) in English or in French may be used. However, to use CANUTEC's telephone number, the consignor must receive permission, in writing, from CANUTEC."
Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations, Section 3.5(2)
That written permission comes through registration. Transport Canada's CANUTEC registration page states that registration gives the right to use the 24-hour emergency number on shipping documents, makes CANUTEC's technical assistance immediately available in an incident, and that the services are free of charge to Canadian companies. Registering requires emergency contact arrangements, technical information on the goods, such as Safety Data Sheets, and an annual account review. The registration line is 613-947-5048.
One restriction closes the section: Transport Canada's dangerous goods marks guidance notes that CANUTEC's telephone number cannot be used on the lithium battery mark. The consent covers shipping documents, not that mark.
The short version
- CANUTEC is Transport Canada's emergency centre for dangerous goods, defined in Section 1.4 and run by the TDG Directorate.
- Bilingual scientists answer 24/7 with chemical properties, evacuation distances, health effects, protective equipment, and mitigation advice.
- Three emergency numbers: 1-888-CAN-UTEC (226-8832), 613-996-6666, which accepts collect calls, and *666 from a cell phone in Canada.
- The law names CANUTEC in four Part 8 reports: release, loss or theft, unlawful interference, and ERAP implementation.
- The first spill call still goes to local authorities. Section 8.2 sends the emergency report to the local authority at the scene before CANUTEC enters the chain.
- Written permission is required before a consignor puts CANUTEC's number on a shipping document, obtained through free registration.
Part 6 of the regulations requires every certificate holder to be trained on the reporting requirements, so CANUTEC's role shows up on the exam. Try the reporting questions on our free TDG practice test, and if your team also handles these chemicals inside the building, pair the certificate with WHMIS training.
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Frequently asked questions
What does CANUTEC stand for and who runs it?
CANUTEC is the Canadian Transport Emergency Centre, defined in Section 1.4 of the TDG Regulations as the emergency centre of the Department of Transport. It is operated by Transport Canada's Transportation of Dangerous Goods Directorate and staffed by bilingual scientists trained in emergency response.
Is CANUTEC's help free?
Transport Canada states that CANUTEC services are free of charge to Canadian companies, and the direct emergency line accepts collect calls. Registration to use the 24-hour number on shipping documents is also free, with an annual account review to keep it current.
Do I call CANUTEC first after a spill?
No. Section 8.2 sends the first emergency report to the local authority responsible for responding to emergencies where the incident happened, which in most of Canada means 911. CANUTEC is called under Section 8.4 when the incident causes serious consequences such as a death, treated injuries, an evacuation, a closure, or a compromised container.
Can I put CANUTEC's number on my shipping document?
Only with written permission. Section 3.5(2) allows a competent third party's number as the 24-hour number, but using CANUTEC's number requires the consignor to receive permission in writing from CANUTEC, obtained by registering. Registration requires technical information on the goods, such as Safety Data Sheets, so the advisors can help immediately if your shipment has an incident.
What is *666?
It is the shortcut for reaching CANUTEC from a cell phone in Canada. Transport Canada lists it alongside the toll-free line at 1-888-CAN-UTEC (226-8832) and the direct line at 613-996-6666, all answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
What is the Emergency Response Guidebook?
The Emergency Response Guidebook is the manual first responders use in the first minutes of a dangerous goods incident to identify hazards and set initial isolation and evacuation distances. Transport Canada, through CANUTEC, develops it together with the United States, Mexico, and Argentina.
Regulations evolve. This guide reflects the federal Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations as consolidated to June 17, 2026, and Transport Canada's published CANUTEC information. Consignors and carriers remain responsible for verifying current phone numbers and reporting duties with Transport Canada before shipping.