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Non-emergency phone numbers for police and NHS out of action
Non-emergency police and NHS helplines back up after disruption
(35 minutes later)
Callers to the non-emergency numbers for the police and the NHS were unable to get through to the helplines on Saturday due to technical difficulties.
Disruption to the non-emergency helplines for the police and the NHS was resolved on Saturday after callers were unable to get through for several hours.
Humberside police tweeted that the cause of the problem with the police 101 helpline was faulty equipment in Birmingham.
The NHS 24 helpline – accessed by dialling 111 – was hit by a “technical difficulty” for several hours, leaving the service unavailable for callers around the UK.
The Metropolitan police posted a tweet asking the public to use its website or visit their local station to report non-urgent crime: “999 calls remain unaffected but Londoners are reminded to only use this in an emergency.”
Officials worked to address the issue “as a matter of priority” and later confirmed that the problem had been resolved and that the full service was back up and running.
Suffolk police said local residents with non-urgent enquiries should call 01473 613 500, reserving 999 for emergencies.
Callers in Scotland and England were advised to access the services by dialling separate 11-digit numbers while the problem was being fixed.
Other forces gave similar advice. North Yorkshire police tweeted: “There is a national issue with our non-emergency 101 line and unfortunately it is off service until further notice. 999 is still fine.” But the force later stated that the number was working again in its area.
A similar technical problem affecting the non-emergency police number 101 was also resolved on Saturday, after regional police forces had asked the public to use their websites or call other numbers in the meantime.
But Northumbria police also reported problems with the number and asked people with non-urgent calls to ring 01661 872 555.
West Midlands ambulance service said that a national telecommunications fault had resulted in most calls to NHS 111 call centres in England, including the one that it runs, not being connected. “The telecoms provider is aware of the problem and is working to fix it.
Callers to 111 services were told to redial on 999 if they considered their condition to be life-threatening and given other numbers to call if it was less serious.
The Home Office is responsible for the 101 service and has not yet commented on the issue.
The government set up the non-emergency number in 2010 to ensure that the 999 number was used for genuine emergencies.
An estimated 70% of the 67m calls made to police in England and Wales annually are considered to be non-emergencies, according to a 2012 Home Office report.
