Rescue services are appealing to the public over the record-high number of “false alarms” that come through every day.
INEM ambulance service is opening its doors to schools and encouraging awareness campaigns, as the drain on manpower, services and equipment across the board has become “very serious”.
“These situations worry us because if another situation crops up, we are straight away at a disadvantage and mobilising for a second genuine emergency can be complicated,” said fire-chief Paulo Silva backing the initiative.
The decision to publicise the problem came after the second false alarm in less than a year in the borough of Mesão Frio, near Vila Real. This latest hoax centred on a serious car accident in which the caller claimed victims were trapped in their wrecked vehicles.
Six rescue vehicles and 13 ambulance, police and fire crew sped to the scene – only to find it was another total red herring: no serious road accident, no incarcerated victims.
As INEM’s Pedro Coelho pointed out, hoax calls like this are nothing new. In 2011, there were more than 21,000, involving the scrambling of 7,634 emergency vehicles.
It is hoped that with an awareness campaign, people will appreciate the potentially-tragic consequences of crying wolf, not to mention the expense, in terms of machinery and personnel.
As Paulo Silva explained, small fire departments have limited resources and next time this could mean the difference between life and death.
