999 Police called over spilt coffee and car wash rudeness

THERE was a flurry of inappropriate calls to the police 999 service over the weekend that in no way could have been considered real emergencies.

- Phil NORRIS

Gloucestershire police has urged people to keep the 999 lines clear for genuine callers after a significant rise in the number of non-urgent 999 calls received in the Force Control Room on Sunday.

Call handlers took 256 999 calls on May 4, and while most of the calls were to report genuine emergencies, numerous people rang to report inappropriate matters. In once instance, a member of the public called to report that they had found some spilt coffee in their kitchen and during another call someone reported that a man had been rude to staff at a car wash.