Don't tie up the line - Don't abuse 999

The Emergency Services in North Wales are asking people to use the 999 system wisely to help ensure a genuine emergency is not missed over the festive period.

Traditionally Christmas and New Year are among the busiest times of year for the Police, Fire and Ambulance, and officers have asked people to be mindful before dialling 999.

Chief Inspector Jane Banham, from the force's Operational Communications Division, said: "We are now approaching our busiest time of year. Every false or inappropriate 999 call to North Wales Police takes up precious time and prevents someone who really needs our immediate help from getting through to us.

Between 7pm on the 30th of December, 2008 and 7am on the 31st of December, officers took 114, 999 calls and 199 non emergency calls. Between 7pm on the 31st of December 2008 and 7am on the 1st of January 2009, 498 emergency calls and 255 non emergency calls were made to the force.

"I would always encourage people to use 999 in a genuine emergency and never put themselves at risk, and for those people, who do not have an emergency, please use our single non emergency number, 101, and keep the 999 line free for someone in urgent need."

She added: "Phoning 999 for routine matters will not result in an improved service to the caller, who will be requested to ring back on the non-emergency number. If people are found to consistently making hoax calls they could face prosecution."

This year, North Wales Police are also promoting 101 - the new single non emergency number which was launched throughout Wales back in April. The number is advertised widely across Wales, and should be used to speak to the police about a general enquiry or to report a non emergency crime such as anti social behaviour, harassment or intimidation, drunken or rowdy behaviour, and dangerous driving.

C.I Banham said: 999 should still be used if there is a crime in progress; violence is being used or threatened; an offender has been recently disturbed or made off; or there has been a road accident where people are injured or the road is blocked.

However, many people dial 999 when their call isn't an emergency simply because they don't know how else to contact the police. 101 is an easy number to remember and it gives people access to all areas of the force. The response from the public locally has been excellent. Between April and October this year, North Wales Police have received 20,767 calls via the 101 line, which is helping to reduce the number of unnecessary or inappropriate 999 calls."

North Wales Welsh Ambulance Service Regional Director Dafydd Jones-Morris said: Please act responsibly when calling 999 for an emergency ambulance, especially at this time of year when we traditionally see a rise in calls. Remember that sending an ambulance to a call that is not an emergency could delay a response to a seriously ill or injured patient, and patients with minor illnesses or injuries who arrive at hospital by ambulance do not receive faster treatment.

If you feel unwell, or have hurt yourself, but dont think you need an ambulance, there are other paths available for you to seek the appropriate medical help. North Wales residents can call NHS Direct Wales on 0845 46 47 if feeling ill and are unsure what to do, or for health information on a wide range of conditions, treatments and local health services. You can also contact your local GP for an urgent appointment or visit a local pharmacy.

Richard Fairhead, Senior Fire Safety Manager from the North Wales Fire and Rescue Service said: "Hoax calls put lives in danger as resources that could be needed elsewhere are tied up.

"When crews are called to attend life critical incidents, appliances are not diverted from another incident - they use the next available appliance. This may involve a time delay which could prove fatal.

"We take the implications of hoax and malicious calls very seriously and have a call challenging policy in place which has dramatically reduced the number of hoax calls we attend. Making hoax calls to any emergency service is a criminal offence.

"Unfortunately, children are often unaware how potentially dangerous these calls can be. We are asking parents to help by making sure that they know where their children are and what they are up to during the evenings, weekends and school holidays."

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