Latest news with #emergencycalls
BBC News
21 hours ago
- BBC News
Dozens of police calls from at-risk North Yorkshire phone boxes
Dozens of emergency phone calls were made from phone boxes in North Yorkshire which BT has earmarked for closure, the council has communications company has given notice of its intention to withdraw more than 90 kiosks in the county classed as "last at site", meaning there are no other payphones within response to a 90-day consultation for more than 40 sites, North Yorkshire Council said there was evidence to retain them, as they had been used to make 68 calls to police over 12 which has been contacted for comment, put forward the proposals as part of an ongoing rationalisation of underused phone boxes. North Yorkshire Council raised concerns about visitors' ability to contact emergency services in remote and rural parts of the county popular with tourists."Unfortunately, incidents and accidents needing emergency or helpline advice will happen," it said."The local community will be aware which mobile service providers have a better-quality signal for their settlement and will purchase mobile service provider contracts appropriately."Visitors to the region may not be aware of weaker signal areas for different service providers, so if an incident arises that does need emergency or helpline advice, they may not be able to use their own mobile phone." Figures provided to the council by North Yorkshire Police showed one phone box in Bondgate, Selby, was used to call police 12 in Hunmanby, near Filey, and Embsay, in the Yorkshire Dales, were used nine in Sandsend, near Whitby, Horton-in-Ribblesdale, and Weaverthorpe, near Malton, were all used "multiple times", according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.A separate consultation for 32 other sites will take place later this year."We've made representations to BT, but the problem is they look at how many calls have been made, and the numbers are often very low," Upper Dales councillor Yvonne Peacock said while mobile phone coverage had improved in recent years, a payphone was sometimes the only option for tourists to contact the emergency services. BT can only remove "last at site" kiosks if certain criteria are met, such as the area not having a high accident or suicide rate, and having mobile phone coverage for all four final decision on the removal rests with the company. Listen to highlights from North Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.
The Guardian
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Download festivalgoers warned against making accidental 999 calls from moshpit
When hundreds of 999 calls came in from fans at the Download festival two years ago, the emergency services must have thought a disaster was unfolding at the three-day heavy metal gig in Leicestershire. In fact, the calls were made automatically from smartwatches and other devices worn by fans because 'the tech assumed that people in moshpits had been in a collision', according to Leicestershire police. Now the force is appealing to those attending the festival this weekend to turn their devices to airplane mode or disable emergency alerts to avoid unnecessary 999 calls. The number of 999 calls during the event doubled from the usual 600 or so over a long weekend. 'In previous years, due to wearable tech issues, we saw a rise of nearly 700 extra 999 calls in a weekend,' Leicestershire police said on social media this week. 'All those calls had to be assessed … to ensure there is no threat, risk or harm, taking our contact handlers away from answering true emergency calls.' Police are asking fans to stay on the line if their device makes an accidental 999 call, or to answer callbacks made by emergency teams 'to let us know you are safe'. According to one US personal injury law firm, moshpits 'always have risks and dangers' but can result in 'enjoyable chaos and energy release'. Some wearable technology includes a 'crash detection' feature. Apple says its watches and some iPhones will sound an alarm and display an alert if they detect a 'severe car crash'. Unless the alert is cancelled, the device calls the emergency services after a 30-second countdown. About 75,000 people are expected to attend the Download festival in Donington Park, a racetrack near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, for what the organisers call the 'UK's premier rock festival'. Sign up to Sleeve Notes Get music news, bold reviews and unexpected extras. Every genre, every era, every week after newsletter promotion The site has been open to campers since Wednesday with the rock festival opening on Friday. Green Day, Sleep Token and Korn are the daily headline acts at the festival. This year's fancy dress theme is Friday 13th. The organisers said: 'For everyone's safety and comfort, we ask that you don't bring any fake or replica weapons, including toy guns, swords or other realistic-looking props. These items can cause confusion during security checks and may be mistaken for real weapons by our teams or the police. They can also be distressing to other festival-goers.'
Daily Mail
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Download Festival warning as police urge attendees NOT to wear smart watches after 'issues' last year
Festival-goers have been told to leave their smart watches at home when visiting Download after the cops received hundreds of accidental calls from mosh pits last year. Leicestershire Police said on a routine weekend the force handles around 600 emergency calls - but during Download Festival weekend there was 700 more than usual. Body-worn devices, such as smart watches, automatically calls the emergency services if it senses the wearer has been in a crash or suffered a fall. The significant increase in calls places a 'huge burden' on call handlers as they have to be assessed and then called back three times to ensure the caller is safe. This process takes resources away from genuine emergencies, the cops warned. Officers have urged the head-banging heavy metal fans to put their smart watches into airplane mode before entering 'the pit' as the wearable tech 'assumes they have been in a collision'. Disabling emergency alerts on the watches were also advised - or to leave them at home altogether. In an Instagram post shared this week, Leicestershire Police also suggested staying on the line if their watch has called them by mistake. The rock and metal festival held in Donington Park, Leicestershire, between June 13 and 15 will be attended by up to 130,000 people and will feature performances from Green Day, McFly, Korn and Weezer. A Leicestershire Police spokesperson said: 'Download Festival starts this weekend. In previous years, due to wearable tech issues, we saw a rise of nearly 700 extra 999 calls in a weekend. 'The tech assumed that people in mosh pits had been in a collision, causing 999 contacts and abandoned 999 calls. 'All those calls had to be assessed, with three outbound call attempts completed to ensure there is no threat, risk or harm, taking our contact handlers away from answering true emergency calls. 'Help Us Help You by answering our callbacks from hidden numbers to let us know you are safe. We also recommend switching on 'airplane mode' or disabling emergency alerts on your wearable tech.' The warning comes only weeks after the latest Download Festival controversy which saw LGBTQ acts threatening to boycott after organisers followed the Supreme Court's ruling over gender. The ruling said that trans men and women should use toilets according to their biological sex - not the gender they identify as. But last month, trans pop-punk artist Noahfinnce says the decision will be put people 'in danger', declaring the decision means: 'My trans sisters have to risk outing themselves in the men's [toilets]'. The row has come to the attention of Harry Potter author and women's rights campaigner JK Rowling, who said of the complaints by trans artists and campaigners: 'Nothing short of women's total capitulation will be good enough for them'.
The Independent
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Download Festival revellers issued mosh pit warning
Leicestershire Police are urging Download Festival attendees to put wearable tech in airplane mode to avoid accidental 999 calls triggered by mosh pit activity. The festival typically causes a surge in emergency calls, with an increase of nearly 700 calls over a normal weekend due to devices misinterpreting mosh pit movements as collisions. Each accidental call requires assessment and follow-up, diverting resources from genuine emergencies. Attendees are asked to answer callbacks from hidden numbers to confirm their safety and disable emergency alerts on their devices. Download Festival, expected to host about 75,000 fans, has seen past incidents, including two deaths in 2022.
CTV News
20-05-2025
- Health
- CTV News
Importance of Paramedics Services Week
Winnipeg Watch Ryan Sneath, Deputy Chief of Paramedics with WFPS talks about why Paramedics Services Week is important and how many emergency calls the city handles.
