UKC

Last night I watched a prgramme about the West Midlands Ambulance Service.

Featured in it was what turned out to be a hoax call about somebody hanging from a lampost in a Sainsbury's car park.

It got me wondering: what the hell is the mentality/motive of the people that make these calls and how would they react if, as the result of such a call, (assuming they were the victim of a genuine emergency) and their treatment, rescue or whatever was delayed.

I feel these people are worse than irresponsible.

In reply to mypyrex:

They need to prosecute these calls where ever possible, and give draconian sentences (year in jail minimum)

In reply to balmybaldwin:

Same as hoax bomb calls - I'm pretty certain they carry custodial sentences, and airlines black list such customers.

In reply to balmybaldwin:

In reply to Lusk:

>They need to prosecute these calls where ever possible, and give draconian sentences (strung up from a lampost)

That's no good it'll only generate more calls about someone hanging from a lamp post

In reply to mypyrex:

I suspect that they are probably not so much irresponsible as unwell. It really isn't a normal way to behave.

In reply to marsbar:


I'd be interested to know what their reaction is when(if) they get rumbled and confronted with the stupidity of their actions.

In reply to mypyrex:

I've done a stint in a call centre passing 999s to the emergency services - the amount of 'hoax' 999s goes up astronomically when it's school holidays. They're not generally proper hoaxes like the one mentioned above, but they still tie up the people answering the phones.

In reply to Toerag:

And I guess each generation of teenagers think that what they are doing is so 'cool', or fun, or whatever, without thinking through the consequences.

In reply to marsbar:


There's always one apologist isn't there?

It's entirely possible for people to be stupid, uncaring, bored, f#ckw!tted, malicious, infantile, or a combination of all, without them being "unwell."

In reply to balmybaldwin:


Really? If a drunk person makes a stupid emergency service call, they should spend a year in prison?

In reply to aln:

Not just for calling, but for wasting ambulance time if there is no patient yes. Being drunk does not absolve you of a crime

In reply to balmybaldwin:

Good luck with policing that.

In reply to aln:


If that call leads to a person in genuine crisis not getting an ambulance, with all the possible ramifications of that, then yes. It could lead to a culpable manslaughter charge.

Just hide your phone away before going on a bender next time.

In reply to Big Ger:


Your posting history certainly proves your point. Although the "unwell" part casts a doubt.

In reply to mypyrex:


Precisely. They should have called Mountain Rescue

In reply to mypyrex:

Then, of course, there are the geniuses who call 999 because they've lost the TV remote/run out of fags/had a lightbulb blow/whatever.........

In reply to mypyrex:

Whilst hoax calls are a nuisance and a waste of resources, frequent callers are a fair greater problem in reality making up about 5% of our workload. Some are genuine (chronic illnesses like COPD, frequent fallers etc), but many are due to mental health problems or alcohol abuse or more likely a combination of both, and often involve abusive behaviour towards staff. They are fair harder to deal with, and harder to prosecute.

At least with hoax calls you don't actually have to do any work when you arrive at scene

In reply to aln:


Yes. If they can’t handle their drink without it resulting in them being so blatantly stupid, they shouldn’t drink.

In reply to Big Ger:

Possible yes. Common not so much.

There is a difference that you don't seem to recognise between explaining behaviour and excusing it.

At no point did I say it was acceptable behaviour or that it shouldn't be dealt with.

The op was trying to understand the mentality behind hoax calls.

I'm not an apologist. I've dealt with kids who did this sort of thing and I can assure you that I bollocked them from here into next week as well as making all the points about how it could be their granny who needed an ambulance etc etc.

However the fact remains that there was quite a correlation with attachment disorder and making hoax calls. Normal well adjusted happy kids are far far less likely to make hoax calls.

In reply to marsbar:


Agreed.