Dubai Police respond to 999 'extreme emergency calls' in just two minutes

Officers urge public to be mindful of difference between 999 and 901 numbers

The average time for Dubai Police to reach extreme emergency scenes was only 2.33 minutes. Pawan Singh / The National

Dubai Police's 999 emergency number received about 1.2 million calls during the second quarter of 2021.

The average time for police to reach “extreme emergency scenes” was only 2.33 minutes with a targeted response time of six minutes, and 10.17 minutes for emergency cases where a target of 15 minutes was in place, state news agency Wam reported on Thursday.

The average time for police patrols to reach non-emergency scenes was 10.45 minutes with a targeted response time of 30 minutes.

Of the 1,177,347 calls to the 999 number, 99.6 per cent were answered within 10 seconds. The force received 1,094,373 calls to the same number in the same period of last year.

Officers urged the public to understand the difference between 901 and the emergency hotline 999 and to be more mindful of the calls they make to the hotline. The toll-free 901 number was launched in October 2010 to divert non-urgent calls from the emergency 999 number and limit its misuse.

Police patrols, meanwhile, have increased across Dubai to ensure public safety during the Eid Al Adha holiday.

Authorities said 120 traffic police patrols would be stationed across the city to ensure the safety of motorists and pedestrians.

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