RESIDENTS are being warned to only call 999 in an emergency after several silent hoax calls on the number were made from a phone box in Droitwich.
Last year, more than 600,000 emergency and non emergency calls were made to the West Mercia and Warwickshire Police’s control room, many of which were requesting police resources to attend serious life threatening incidents.
But hoax calls are a drain on force resources, pulling police away from other incidents and putting lives in danger.
Ch Insp Sean Kent, at Warwickshire Police and West Mercia Police, said “We’d like to remind the public, about the seriousness of hoax calls.
£By making these fraudulent calls, you could be preventing the police from attending an incident where someone is in serious need of help.
“All our calls to the police are recorded, and those who misuse the 999 service could face prosecution, leading to a criminal record, heavy fines or even imprisonment.
He said he also wanted to encourage parents to speak to their children about how they should only call 999 in an emergency and about how hoax calls could endanger lives..
The force has come up with a useful mnemonic to help people remember when they should call 999 –
P Phone 999 only if
O Offenders are nearby
L Life is at risk
I Injury is caused or threatened
C Crime or disorder is in progress
E Emergency situations
For any other situations, 101 (the non-emergency number) should be called –
• If you have had a minor traffic collision
• If your property has been damaged
• If your car has been stolen
• If you suspect drug dealing
• If you have been burgled and there are no offenders on scene
• If you have witnessed a crime
• If you have information about criminals in your local area
• If you have seen a missing person
• If you need crime prevention advice
• If you want to speak to a local police officer/ your local Safer Neighbourhood Team
• If you want to speak to the police about any other incident that doesn’t require an immediate response
• If you want to make us aware of any policing issues in your local area
Both numbers are available 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week.
Calls to 101 from landlines and mobile networks cost 15p per call, no matter what time of day or how long the caller is on.
