Have you ever called 999 or 112?

efb

I never have, I googled the local garda station when I had to call them- didnt feel it was an emergency

Have you ever called the emergency services?

punisher5112

efb wrote: »

I never have, I googled the local garda station when I had to call them- didnt feel it was an emergency

Have you ever called the emergency services?

Yeah do all the time that cat outside keeps giving me dirty looks.

alroley

yeah, when I was 6 years old, and I got so scared that someone would arrest me for calling 999 and then hanging up.

hagoonabear

have rang the garda a few times, when my house was set on fire, when local scum started lighting random fires at corners/ footpaths with wheelie bins

efb

punisher5112 wrote: »

Yeah do all the time that cat outside keeps giving me dirty looks.

This post is so witty and clever :-/

Avada

Yup! The guys in the dublin fire brigade call centre are a credit to DFB. Have had to call a few ambulances and they were always so helpful and nice.

efb

hagoonabear wrote: »

have rang the garda a few times, when my house was set on fire, when local scum started lighting random fires at corners/ footpaths with wheelie bins

Yikes!

kneemos

Called the fire service once when an old car the landlord was working on caught fire one night.
There in a couple of minutes,must have been passing or something.

Staplor

Yep, my neighbour's house was broken into, I rang 999 they said they'd send the Gardai, 15 minutes later I rang the local station, no report reached them. Then the local Gardai station sent for a copper from another town to come investigate. When he arrived the robbers had done their robbing and had gone.

antodeco

Yep a few times. Rang them once about a drunk driver on the m50. Swerving between 2 lanes constantly.

NomadicGray

Once when there was a house nearby ablaze, but someone else had called it in

jungleman

yeah. one night all of my housemates went out while I stayed in, I had an assignment to hand in for the next day. I left the back door unlocked for them, so they wouldn't be ringing the doorbell annoying me when they came in. I was up in my room, had some music playing on the speakers and was happy as larry typing away. Went to sleep then after a while. Woke up the next morning and everyone was downstairs with sore heads on them! One of the girls left her laptop, mp3 player and phone on the kitchen table. She couldn't find any of them, they were gone.

After a while we realised that the house must have been robbed the night before, when they were out and I was upstairs, whoever it was came in the back door which was unlocked. So we walked out the back and saw three of the long and sharp kitchen knifes on the ground outside. Whoever it was came in the back door, grabbed the three knives and was walking around the house. Could even have been upstairs with me listening to music. They could have been in my room when I was asleep.

We rang 999 out of sheer panic, looking back on it now it wasn't an emergency so we probably should have just rang the local station.

Yes, after I was mugged on the street in London. Two big guys threatened me with a knife at about 5pm and took my money but turned their noses up at my old Nokia, which meant I could use it to call the cops when they left after they told me to keep quiet for 10 minutes or they'd be back to cut my throat. Cops came 20 minutes later, didn't get the guys.

kneemos

Candie wrote: »

Yes, after I was mugged on the street in London. Two big guys threatened me with a knife at about 5pm and took my money but turned their noses up at my old Nokia, which meant I could use it to call the cops when they left after they told me to keep quiet for 10 minutes or they'd be back to cut my throat. Cops came 20 minutes later, didn't get the guys.

Did you wait?

kneemos

kneemos wrote: »

Did you wait?

I went into a coffee shop and waited, but I was so frightened I was worried they'd come back, follow me in and knife me in there. Fear does strange things to you.

Ruu

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ab8GtuPdrUQ

No.

Menas

Thankfully never had to call them....only bad things happen, or have happened when you have to call them.

NotCominBack

Ok, I have an emergency right now, which one do I call, 112 or 999?

endacl

NotCominBack wrote: »

Ok, I have an emergency right now, which one do I call, 112 or 999?

See Ruu's post above.

osarusan

Yes, called 999 when I was living in Maynooth after a guy got hit by a car while jaywalking across the road (he was right in front of me, doing the same thing).

It was on the main street and they came from literally around the corner, about a minute later.

The guy's face was pretty badly injured but he was ok. I saw him standing at a crossing a few weeks later impatiently pressing the pedestrian crossing button over and over.

punisher5112

NotCominBack wrote: »

Ok, I have an emergency right now, which one do I call, 112 or 999?

911.

LadyAthame

Personally no. My mother had to when I had a grand mal seizure in Jan. But I have never needed to. Or actually I think my brother called them. Hopefully we won't be doing that again!

Oh wait I once saw smoke pouring out of a house in Rathmines. I did then. But that was years ago.

punisher5112

I have a number of times for different situations from crashes, robbery in progress, motoring offence drunk driver, pedestrian knocked down, crashes I have been in, ambulance a few times for others.

Cathmandooo

Rang once when I saw some young fellas breaking into a warehouse. Garda van arrived within 5 minutes, followed by a squad car a few minutes later, and an unmarked car after that! Couldn't believe it, must be something very fancy in that warehouse.

brummytom

I called 111 (NHS Direct) last September when the pain in my side got horrendous, after a day of hoping it would go away. They called 999 for me (ended up being appendicitus), but I don't think I've ever had to call them directly.

Areyouwell

efb wrote: »

Have you ever called 999 or 112?

Yes, about 20 years ago when my dad was having a heart attack at home. He survived thank god.

NotCominBack

punisher5112 wrote: »

911.

Do I put 01 before that?

looksee

I rang 999 when our house seemed to be on fire, smoke and a strong smell of burning but no sign of any flames. There was a mysterious column of smoke rising from the centre of a bed though, even though it obviously was not on fire.

They came pretty quickly and took the house apart looking for the source of the smoke. Eventually it turned out it was coming from a wood burning stove next door, the smoke had got into the cavity walls and floors of the house. Since it was a '70s house and built with the concern for regulations of the time, the smoke was getting into the dividing cavity wall and then under our upstairs floor, coming through the floorboards and by some trick of air circulation was re-gathering on the bed. Whole thing was really weird.

Vojera

Not personally, but my wife rang once when I was inside a Lidl that was being robbed at gunpoint and she was outside waiting in the car. She saw a bike pull up outside with the license plate covered and saw the two men on it go inside with their helmets on carrying a handgun and a hammer, so she rang straight away.

The 999 operator patched her through to the local garda station, who didn't pick up the phone. So she kept getting the operator coming back on going "I'm still trying to get you a connection" and no answer them on the other end. By the time she actually got talking to a guard the thieves were gone.

kneemos

NotCominBack wrote: »

Do I put 01 before that?

+353 01 911

Skylinehead

When I was 5, in my grannies house in Belfast. The RUC weren't very impressed...

cml387

punisher5112 wrote: »

I have a number of times for different situations from crashes, robbery in progress, motoring offence drunk driver, pedestrian knocked down, crashes I have been in, ambulance a few times for others.

Are you a cast member in Fair City?

chakotha

No deliberately but my last phone in pocket with keys and lighter dialled it a handful of times. Serious nuisance!

r93kaey5p2izun

Yes when I needed the Fire Brigade when scumbags set fire to my shed. They took 45 minutes so neighbours had to try and tackle the blaze. They came to the wrong place then moaned to me about poor access as it's a terraced house.

Have had to phone local Garda station for assistance in work a couple of times but wouldn't use the emergency number. No longer phone at home for assistance (burglary, vandalism, harassment) as it seems they're not interested in dealing with people from my area.

Bruthal

Once, while lying on hall floor after snapping the leg on the stairs.

IsaacWunder

Couple of times, when I was a kid, messing. No fake emergency, just dial 999, then hang up when answered.

Called the coca cola freephone telephone number a few times as well. They were great craic.

pq0n1ct4ve8zf5

Yeah, had to call the ambulance for someone having what turned out to be a bleed on her brain.

Called the gards another time for what turned out to be a complete waste of time, but I did it in good faith.

Also saw some auld bint call the gards on my dad in a dispute over a parking space in the headford road shopping centre many years back, the look on her face as they (presumably not in so many words) told her to fcuk off was pretty gratifying

The Backwards Man

Couple of times when I'm not at home, at home usually ring the barracks, local knowledge still trumps centralised 'efficiency'

KomradeBishop

Ya - getting off a dart once, door opened right in front of a guy, who I think had jumped off the pedestrian bridge above the platform.

jjbrien

Had to ring it 3 times so far

Once i was sharing a house with a couple his girl knocks on my door and the lad had overdosed on pain meds. Called 999 that time ambulance showed up but he died a few weeks later in hospital

Once when I was working down the country in Longford we found a guy laying on the footpath in the door of a shop all bloody

The last time as last year we look out our apartment window and seen the shed of at the back of a house on fire. The guards showed up first which was odd we didnt ask for them then the firemen 3 mins later. We were like when we seen the guards there thats the wrong service they sent!!

keith16

KomradeBishop wrote: »

Ya - getting off a dart once, door opened right in front of a guy, who I think had jumped off the pedestrian bridge above the platform.

Jesus H

conorh91

I was in a shop once, and a junkie came in and started screaming at the teller, then picking u items and throwing them. A few of us started trying to calm down the junkie who picked something off the counter and ran off. I rang the Gardaí, who hadn't arrived when I left the teller 15 minutes later.

Another time I was out for a jog one night and the neighbours house alarm was going off. I knew they were away so I range he Gardaí. The local station closed down, and I didn't know the number of the next local station, so I rang 999.

During another 'crime-fighting jog' of mine, when some drugged idiots started somersaulting and pushing one another into the canal from a bridge at quite a height. They were narrowly avoiding a large metal object sticking out of the bridge, which could cause serious injury. Maybe I should have taken a Darwinian approach, but these idiots will only cost more by doing harm to themselves. I was uncertain about which station was most local, and wouldn't have had their number anyway, so felt I had to ring the emergency services instead.

Most recently, I was driving on a bad stretch of road from Carlow to Dublin, and was the second car to happen across a crash. The occupants of both vehicles were being dealt with, and I called an ambulance.

I seem to be a serial emergency services dialer.

Bitta trivia: if you dial 911 in Ireland, you will get through to the emergency services.

PandaPoo

Twice, first time I found my baby unconscious and the second was when a woman was mugged. Both response times were great I have to say.

honeybear

I called them last year. I was on a bypass and a car was driving in the wrong direction and I had to swerve to avoid them-it was terrifying

smash

I did it once when I was drunk and I lost my phone. I was 20 at the time and I wanted to report my mobile phone as stolen just to make sure there was a report so the insurance would pay out. They weren't impressed, and it turned out that I was calling from my 'stolen' mobile.

KomradeBishop

keith16 wrote: »

Jesus H

Ya - had to do chest compressions and such until they arrived as well, but he must have been there a while already (which seemed odd - couldn't have been that long since previous train), as was already blue.

Frynge

Yep several times.... Let's see how many I can remember.

Some guy out of his mind on drugs throwing bar stools at me like donkey kong.

When I seen my car being driven out of the driveway from my bedroom.

Second time my car was stolen (although in hindsight that wasn't really an emergency and I was told that on the phone)

When I saw someone ploughed down by a car

When the till was stolen in work (I mean they actually stole the whole till, there was no money in it but they picked up the whole thing and went with it.)

When two guys tried to kick in my front door.

When a hotel went on fire.

When a car outside the hotel was set on fire. (Scumbag was arrested at the scene)

When someone in work threatened to cut my throat.

Couple weeks ago when I totalled a Navara on the n11.

Two weeks ago when getting threatened by a former employee. Who proceeded to then attack the gardai when they arrived and had to be subdued with pepper spray and a couple of batons.


In case anyone is wondering I do have them on speed dial.

myshirt

Has anyone ever called the operator?

cuana

Sadly all the time! Working in retail I've had to deal with a lot of people getting sick very quickly I've yet to deal with my biggest fear which is someone having a heart attack!! :eek:

Little CuChulainn

Vojera wrote: »

Not personally, but my wife rang once when I was inside a Lidl that was being robbed at gunpoint and she was outside waiting in the car. She saw a bike pull up outside with the license plate covered and saw the two men on it go inside with their helmets on carrying a handgun and a hammer, so she rang straight away.

The 999 operator patched her through to the local garda station, who didn't pick up the phone. So she kept getting the operator coming back on going "I'm still trying to get you a connection" and no answer them on the other end. By the time she actually got talking to a guard the thieves were gone.

That's not unusual for that kind of incident in the country. Your call is routed by an outsourced organisation to a Garda divisional control room. The people in the routing center don't communicate with each other so they will keep trying to put you through even though the lines are all tied up with other people reporting the exact same thing.

RobertKK

One time to get the ambulance out for my mother when she broke her pelvis.
Another time for my father.
Worst case was when I was going to mass one Sunday morning,
there was a car in front of me and they slowed down and stop, came across a cyclist laid out across the road and the bike between his legs.
The person in the car in front didn't want to deal with the situation and I just took over the situation.
The man was unconscious and finding it difficult to breathe, he had cuts on his head and on his legs. There was bloody spittle coming from his mouth. The emergency people were great and stayed on the phone till the ambulance came.
They could hear him struggling to breathe and told me what to do, when I did what I told I basically got splattered with bloody spittle, but the main thing was he was breathing better.
The ambulance people came in about 12 minutes, I assisted them and off he went, later taken to Dublin given his situation was serious.
I continued my journey when the situation was resolved and went to mass with speckles of blood on my clothes, had a bit of a clean up in a public toilet.
The Gardai then had an appeal to the public for information about it the following day, so I rang them and they came to my house and I told them what I came across.
I was asked why did I move the bike from where it was to the side of the road and not leave it where it was :rolleyes: as if you would leave the bike where it was, when the important thing was to help the man.
A few months later the Gardai rang looking for another statement and again came to my house. I think they were closing the case, looking to see if the events had somehow changed.
You try and help someone, and then you get the feeling the Gardai think you were somehow responsible.
I think the person driving in front didn't contact the Gardai.