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Original poster

Have you ever phoned 999

242 replies

Woolywolf · 15/08/2021 21:10

If so when/why? I have, once when I panicked a bit after being mugged but luckily haven’t had to any other time

OP posts:
Doubledoorsontogarden · 15/08/2021 22:16

Road traffic situations several times

thelastgoldeneagle · 15/08/2021 22:18

When my dd felt as if she was having a heart attack. When my boyfriend had a fit. (He had meningitis. He died.)

Linnet · 15/08/2021 22:19

Always for an ambulance…
When a woman was hit by a car outside my flat
When a customer collapsed at my work with an angina attack
When a woman collapsed outside my work, my boss ran out to use the defibrillator I called 999
When another customer collapsed at my work
Another time when my boss had to run outside with the defibrillator to another collapsed person

I was once at an event where someone took ill and I automatically reached for my phone to call an ambulance, someone else got there first though.

Lysistratathereindeer · 15/08/2021 22:19

Live near a railway line with a gap in the fences. Called 999 more than once as kids squeeze through to play chicken. I've only ever seen the police turn up once though, and that was about 40 minutes after I called. We've been here several years, relevant authorities all aware of the fence but nobody seems bothered.

undersleptagain · 15/08/2021 22:20

Quite a few times as I was a first aider at a very busy tourist attraction. The absolute worst time was many years ago I was walking around the corner by a multi storey car park and a young boy literally landed in front of me. He had thrown himself off the roof of the multi storey, I called the emergency services and I helped him as much as I could. I left when the ambulance arrived but I found out in the local paper that he died, he was only a 16 or 17 and his father had recently died. It was so sad.

Councilworker · 15/08/2021 22:21

Several times. Once when I was on a bus, driver got out of his cab to tell off a lad who tried to sneak upstairs without paying. Lad kicked the driver in the face repeatedly and driver was shouting ring the police. I think I was the only passenger who did.
Once for myself when I vomited blood and was in tremendous pain. Ruptured ulcer. Apparently my doctor should have mentioned that you can't take ibuprofen if you're on prednisone.

The worst was when I lived in a row of mews type flats. I was eating my breakfast and thought my glasses were really dirty then clocked it was smoke from the end upstairs flat. Went outside and smoke pouring through the night vents in the window. Banging on their door and the flat downstairs while dialling 999. Got the downstairs neighbour awake and out of his flat and fire service dispatched. Had no idea if the upstairs people were alive. Fire fighters went in and did a search. Neighbours were all out and had in fact left their tumble dryer on which caused the fire.
Entire kitchen burnt out and rest of the flat smoke damaged. The landlord rang them and discovered they'd gone away for the weekend and left some towels to dry. Waiting for the fire engine felt like hours but was actually under 5 minutes as it was 8am on a Saturday

LemonRoses · 15/08/2021 22:22

Gosh, lots of times. First time was when I was ten and my father was dying. Last time was a fallen tree on a blind bend with steep drop to side on a fast road a couple of weeks back.

LadyCluck · 15/08/2021 22:22

Several times.
I also used to answer 999 calls.

YesILikeItToo · 15/08/2021 22:24

I was on a work phone call when I saw a burglary in progress outside my window. I said ‘O, I’ll need to call you back, there’s a man stealing a television from the school across the road’ and phoned 999. They came with dogs, I don’t know if they found him, but I was never asked to give evidence.

I’ve also phoned for cars on fire in my street and my mum being unwell, which turned out to be pretty much a faint but not something I had seen before.

OatyBarKid · 15/08/2021 22:25

For an elderly woman when she fell in the road

A burglary

Next door beating his heavily pregnant girlfriend

My son with breathing difficulties

A man who went over his pushbike handlebars and was knocked unconscious

A parent trying to break into the nursery I worked at to take his child (abusive ass hole who was not allowed near the child)

A riot at a nightclub I worked at many moons a go.

SusannahSophia · 15/08/2021 22:25

When I gave birth at home. Twenty minutes after I woke up. Well, my H did. Grin All good, DS3 is 19 now.

AuditAngel · 15/08/2021 22:26

Three times that I can think of. First time DD2 was 13 months and her breathing wasn’t right, she has pneumonia.

Seconds i even was last year when a couple were having a massive prolonged fight outside late at night. They received a number of calls.

Third time was May half term, car broken down in fast lane of the motorway, police, made me very shaky.

I’m a first aider and have instructed other staff at work to call for both asthma attacks and anaphylactic episodes.

GetTaeFuck · 15/08/2021 22:27

Whilst pulling my sisters abusive ex off her Angry It still took them 45 mins to turn up, because they got the area wrong. Despite me giving them the postcode and door number multiple times before I even got there, because the bastard was breaking a restraining order whilst on bail from a previous assault on her. Her neighbour had also called the police before she called me to tell me he had kicked his way into the house and she could hear my then toddler nephew screaming.

I got 5 cracked ribs and a bruise from mid thigh upwards thanks to them failing to turn up for so long. If they’d bothered listening to the neighbour they’d have got there before I did.

Concernedbudgiecarer · 15/08/2021 22:28

Yes, once when a friend was visiting who was pregnant at the time, she suddenly started losing a lot of blood and had agonising stomach pains (unfortunately baby didn't make it but she went on to have a little boy a couple of years later)
Another time when my OH (now ex thankfully) became violent.
Last time I called actually ended up in the newspaper. Coming home one evening and a man charged into us as we entered our house, knocked my friend to the floor and I turned around to see he had a gun, managed to get out the back way and called them. He left by the time police got there but he'd done the same to a few people that night so police caught him the next day. Eight years on and I'm still extra careful when coming home or leaving the house.

Toffeewhirl · 15/08/2021 22:28

Twice in one day last year: in the morning, I witnessed a fire starting and called the fire brigade; in the evening, my son had a seizure. It was quite a day.

follygirl · 15/08/2021 22:29

I have twice.

Once when a lady knocked on my door in the middle of the night in her dressing gown after her boyfriend had dragged her out of their house by her hair. My house was the only one with the light on so she came to me. I wasn't sure what he'd done to her so paramedics and the police came.

Another time my husband was attacked outside our front door after shouting at some anti-social kids. They came at him with a baseball bat and he was lucky that they didn't cause him brain damage.

Dumbledoresgirl · 15/08/2021 22:29

Apart from once as a naughty child Blush, yes a couple of times. Both times for fire brigade. A chimney fire, and another occasion, cant remember the specifics, but something electrical caught fire or shouldered or something. Parents were out. Me and siblings panicked.

blahblahblah321 · 15/08/2021 22:30

Quite a few times..

I fell down the stairs as a teen and called an ambulance for myself.

Friend hit by bike - ambulance again

Spotted a man holding a pen knife turned into his hand (concealing it)

Witnessed a car hit a traffic island, flip on its side and the passengers climb out and leg it - police suspected joy riding, never caught

Called police a few times over Ex - harassment/breaking court order etc

80sMum · 15/08/2021 22:31

I've only had to call 999 three times. Once in 2003 when someone collapsed outside a railway station and 3 times during 2019, for 3 different emergencies.

Summertime21 · 15/08/2021 22:31

Many times, I work in a care home

windowstothesoul · 15/08/2021 22:33

A few times - but most recent was today on M25 - was a few cars back from a crash so called that in - I am sure other would have phoned too - but just in case - car was smoking heavily - but saw all passengers walk out of cars.

Three times at school as a teacher - broken arms & an Asthma attack.

For my own children twice - poorly & an accident

And a few Other driving/traffic ones -

Serena1977 · 15/08/2021 22:33

When my Mum fell and her leg was pointing in the wrong direction. (Fractured hip)

When I couldn't wake my 1 week old baby (jaundice)

When a cyclist fell off his bike in front of me (was a bad crash)

My husband rang for an ambulance for me when I was talking gibberish (infected gall bladder)

And again when I was breathless etc (pneumonia)

Work rang for an ambulance when I had chest pains (spasm of the oesophagus)

My husband rang for his own ambulance and police when he was attacked with a weapon for his takings.

Echobelly · 15/08/2021 22:34

Yup, was walking down the street when I heard a 'thunk' noise - an old gentleman walking with a stick behind me had fallen over and hit his head, and was unconscious. A lady came over to check on him and I rang 999. I stayed until the first responder got there (within 5-10 minutes) - the lady who came to check on him was a neighbour who knew him so I checked with her and the medic they didn't need me for anything else once I'd explained what I'd witnessed. I hope he was OK, he seemed to be coming around as I left.

Longdistance · 15/08/2021 22:34

A few times. Once I saw guys fighting in the road beating ten bells out of one another. Once for my mum, then my dad. I saw a woman get run over once many years ago (they installed pedestrian traffic lights after that incident).
Then when we lived in Oz, a tree was on fire, it was the height of summer 🔥

MirandaMarple · 15/08/2021 22:37

When my Dad got confused with self medicating cancer meds, he was hallucinating. We had a delay in Macmillan care but in all honesty they weren't that great.

Anyway, I rang the cancer care line who advised me to call 999 because he'd also fallen. In the confusion the paramedics thought it was an 'overdose' call. He went into hospital and died 6 weeks later.