Cornwall Fire & Rescue Service Newsdesk

Penzance at 16/03/2007 01:24

Following a 999 call reporting a house on fire in Morrab Road, firefighters from Penzance responded. The crews found that there was no fire at the address given and that the call had been a hoax, made from a public payphone a short distance away.

Whilst the firefighters were responding to this hoax call they were not available to answer genuine calls for help, such as people trapped in a fire or a car following a road traffic collision. The delay in firefighters attending such calls from further away, may have meant the difference between life and death.

Making a hoax call to the fire brigade, apart from being extremely dangerous, is a criminal offence. Those convicted may face a severe fine or even, in some cases, a custodial sentence.

Every effort is made to bring those responsible of making hoax calls to justice and the police are now investigating.