The Hua-lien Fire Department is urging people not to call the emergency
number 119 for reasons other than asking for help or disasters.

The Fire Department's data show that people made some 77-thousand calls to
the line over the past year, with over 10-thousand of them unrelated to
rescue or requests for assistance.

Officials say they included silent calls, calls that were already
disconnected, dialing errors, and inquiries, averaging about 30 calls per
day, and accounting for 20% of all incoming calls.

The Fire Department urges against the misuse of the 119 emergency hotline, as
it may prevent those who truly need assistance from getting through.

It also says that with recent amendments to the Fire Services Act,
individuals who make false reports of various disasters or arbitrarily call
119 can face fines of up to 50-thousand NT.

(JL)