A woman’s cry for help while she and her family were being held by robbers, was logged as a hoax by the 10111 emergency line operator.
|||Durban - A woman’s cry for help while she and her family were being held by robbers, was logged as a hoax by the KwaZulu-Natal police 10111 emergency line operator.
But the incident has highlighted the plight of operators, who have fielded more than 58 000 hoax calls at the Durban call centre alone in the past 10 months, according to police.
This translates to more than 5 000 hoax calls a month, up to 200 a day and more than eight an hour.
Most of the hoax calls were from children aged 10 and below, and people under the influence of alcohol.
Peak periods for hoax calls were after school and late at night.
Police said the high volumes of hoax calls made it increasingly difficult for operators manning the 10111 line to decipher the real calls.
A South Coast mother who called the police emergency line for help earlier this month, as armed robbers invaded her home and threatened to kill her daughters, was furious after the operator hung up on her.
To make matters worse, when she called again after the robbery, the police allegedly failed to respond.
The mother, who did not want to be named, laid an official complaint with police.
Police spokesman, Colonel Vincent Mdunge, said they were investigating the woman’s claims, and internal action would be taken against the culprit.
“We regret this incident and will take necessary precautions to avoid this from happening again,” Mdunge said.
The woman has since been interviewed extensively by police and a detailed affidavit was taken.
She said she was even more furious when the policeman who interviewed her told her that the operator had hung up on her because she thought it was another hoax call.
The operator had apparently received several hoax calls earlier in the evening.
“I told the policeman that I had lost confidence in the police. But, he reassured me that they were taking my complaint very seriously and the operator would be brought to book.”
She said her phone call on the night of the robbery had been tracked and that was how police had managed to get in contact with her.
“They said they had recordings of both calls. The policeman told me that the operator who had answered the call had logged it as a hoax.
“That just made my blood boil. In fact I lost it,” she said. “I told him that police needed to be trained to do their jobs. This kind of excuse was unacceptable. They deal with life and death issues. There is no room for error.”
The woman suggested police take a cue from the Amanzimtoti Community Crime Prevention Organisation (CCPO). “They responded within two minutes. The operator who took my call stayed on the line until help arrived,” she said. “In fact, the police only pitched after they were alerted by the CCPO.”
The woman said that if had the operator done her job properly, her family could have been spared the trauma they endured at the hands of the robbers.
“I am a mess after this incident. I refuse to stay alone at home. We are all terrified,” she said.
“I told the policeman I had lost my personality after this incident. I was a bubbly, chirpy person. Now I cry all the time. I just want to see the good in life again.”
The woman said police promised to keep her informed about the investigation and when the operator was brought to book.
Mdunge told the Daily News that 58 483 hoax call were reported on the emergency line in KZN for the past 10 months.
He said Public Service Act personnel (non-operational police members) manned the emergency line and underwent regular training.
He said there was daily supervision by officers and warrant officers, daily briefings, monthly lectures, new and amended instructions implemented as shifts report on duty and a service delivery improvement lecture every quarter.
“Once a hoax call is logged, it is tracked. In most instances we find the culprits are children,” Mdunge said. “We contact their parents and an official warning is given.”
He said the hoax calls were not taken lightly.
“All hoax call numbers are logged on to a register and are closely monitored. We have had no convictions recently, but many warnings have been issued.”
With the high volumes of hoax calls Mdunge said operators were told to treat all calls seriously.
“They are encouraged to follow full protocol and even dispatch vehicles. If it is found at a later stage that it was a hoax, the culprits will be charged for abusing police time and resources.”
The Durban 10111 call centre is manned by up to 10 operators per shift.
“Claims that the call centre is under-resourced is incorrect,” he said. “The operators have the capacity to deal with all the calls that come through. Also, the Flying Squad with high performance cars are on stand-by 24/7.”
The DA’s Dianne Kohler Barnard said the 10111 operators were dealing with crisis situations and needed to undergo massive training.
“They do not wear uniforms and are unarmed; they perform mainly admin duties.
“They are not equipped to handle such an emergency line,” Kohler Barnard said.
“I receive complaint after complaint about 10111. I have tried calling the number myself on several occasions and it has just resulted in utter frustration,” she said. “They are not in a hurry about anything. It is ridiculous.”
On Friday night last week, a City of Cape Town executive who had just landed in Durban called 10111 to report a stalled car in the middle lane of the N2 south-bound, only to to be placed on hold for a minute while classical music played.
The following night he again called the emergency number to report an allegedly drunk police driver who was driving erratically. Again he was put on hold, the shocked executive told the Daily News.
Daily News