Emergency calls Sheffield: Timewaster dialled 999 to report wifi not working, South Yorkhire Police reveal

The force dealt with over 58,000 calls during the month of July, with 999 emergency calls and 101 calls being split almost 50/50.

The control room recieved 28,492 emergency calls last month, with the busiest day being Saturday, July 9, when they answered 1,138 calls to 999.

999 is for emergencies only, but the force did share one of the calls they shouldn’t have received on the emergency number.

One caller during the month rang 999 and said: “My wifi isn’t working, do you know what time it is?”

South Yorkshire Police clarified this isn’t the type of call the 999 team should be receiving as it takes valuable assistance away from someone who may need it.

The stats said it took only 12 seconds for a 999 call to be answered last month, which rose to 10 minutes and 45 seconds for non-emergency 101 calls.

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29,896 of the 58,000+ calls last month were to 101.

Whilst sharing these statistics, South Yorkshire Police also reminded people they could report non-emergencies via their online portal and live chat, to further keep both the 999 and 101 lines clear for operators.

They reassured the public that incidents reported online would be dealt with in the same way as people who report via the phone.

Anyone needing to report a crime online can do so via the online portal and live chat here.