Hoax callers in South Wales cost the local economy almost £400,000 a year, as well as putting people’s lives in danger.

A staggering 929 hoax calls were made to South Wales Fire and Rescue Service from 1st April 2007 to 31st March 2008, each costing around £650 to attend.

Malicious callers are not only an enormous drain on resources but their thoughtless behaviour endangers the lives and safety of the public.

Firefighters must respond to every emergency call that is made. If they arrive at an address and find out that it's a hoax, it may delay them in attending a serious emergency incident, where they may be needed to rescue someone trapped in a house fire or road traffic collision.

Over half of emergency calls received via 999 last year in the UK were considered to be hoax calls.

In many emergencies, every second really does count. Increasing the time it takes the fire crews to respond could mean the difference between saving a life or losing one. Therefore diverting an appliance through a hoax call could have a major impact.

All calls to the Fire Control Room are recorded and can be instantly be traced back to the caller. This doesn’t just apply to landlines; even calls from public phone boxes and mobile phones are taped and could be traced. Even the 141 code cannot be used to hide the number when dialling 999.

It is illegal to make a hoax emergency call. People can, and have been, heavily prosecuted for making hoax calls with a fine of up to £5,000 or six months in prison.

Fire Control has introduced various initiatives to reduce the number of hoax calls that fire crews respond to in South Wales, including call challenging techniques and educational visits to the Control Room.