This is according to Athlenda Mathe, media liaison officer Netcare 911.
“At about 5am one morning recently, our 24 hour Emergency Operations Centre received a call that a woman had been shot and was in a critical condition in Sebokeng,” said Mathe.
“An Emergency Care Practitioner, two Intermediate Life Support paramedics and a Basic Life Support paramedic raced to the scene of the incident.
“While inquiring for directions, paramedics never found the scene and it was found that this was actually a prank call.”
She said Netcare911 would like to make the public aware that paramedics put their lives at risk and the lives of people in life threatening emergencies when they race to the scene of hoax emergencies.
“When responding to prank calls, medical care to all citizens is compromised and people who desperately need assistance from paramedics will have to wait longer for a response, and many may lose their lives because paramedics take longer to get to the scene to assist them in life threatening situations.
“Our duty as a medical service is to provide the best pre-hospital medical care possible.
“We would really like to make a call to citizens to refrain from taking part in any hoax emergency calls.
“Parents are also advised to educate their children on the dangers of taking part in prank calling.”
