Hoax emergency calls about fake life threatening incidents and traffic accidents are costing the North West Department of Health more than R5 million a month and putting lives at risk.
The huge volume of prank calls means that the emergency personnel who should be attending accident scenes or preparing themselves for genuine incidents, are often tied up with malicious false alarms. Last December alone the department received 11 113 emergency calls and 1 850 of calls received turned out to be someone’s idea of a practical joke.
The Ngaka Modiri Molema District which house North West Capital, Mahikeng has worst offenders. A total of 1 258 hoax emergency calls were registered in Ngaka Modiri Molema alone while Dr Kenneth Kaunda district is second with 510 hoax calls. Seventy two hoax calls were responded to in Bojanala Platinum district while Dr Ruth Segomotse Mompati district had 10 prank calls.
MEC Dr Magome Masike said, “Hoax emergency calls jeopardise the vital work of all Emergency Medical Rescue Services (EMRS) and threaten the lives of the people they serve, which on another occasion could be the hoaxer self, friends or loved ones if they are the ones who need a rapid response from Emergency Medical Rescue team”.
Though the department is able to mobilise back-up teams to genuine incidents, some delays at times are unavoidable when seconds can make all the difference to the outcome of the rescue.
Every hoax call the department attend puts people’s lives at risk. And it also ties up already overstretched resources and emergency personnel.
MEC Masike urges the community of the North West province to be responsible citizens and to reframe from silly jokes which can be classified as criminal considering fact that a second in an emergency can determine one’s life.
Enquiries:
Tebogo Lekgethwane
Cell: 082 929 9958
E-mail: tlekgethwane@nwpg.gov.za
