Think Before You Film

South Wales Fire and Rescue Service are backing a new campaign by the London Fire Brigade to urge the public to #Call999BeforeYouFilm following an increase in people filming emergency incidents rather than calling 999.

Any delay in calling the emergency services could have devastating consequences. Social media can be a valuable tool but one downside is that people have become more focused on gaining likes and retweets for sharing dramatic content, rather than calling 999.

Technology has advanced so much that people are forgetting the basics and becoming complacent about their role in an emergency. Never assume someone else has made the call, receiving multiple calls to the same fire can help our control officers build up a bigger picture of the incident which could include assigning more fire engines to attend.

London Fire Brigade say they have been baffled by the fact that when the first fire engine arrives on scene, there are people simply stood around filming a building burning rather than calling the emergency services.

Remember #Call999BeforeYouFilm.

What happens when you call 999?

• When you ring 999, you’ll be put through to an operator who will ask what emergency service you need. If you say ‘fire’, you will be put through to the fire control room.
• First, our control officers will ask for the address of the emergency. It’s fine if you don’t know the full address, the road name and a landmark is sufficient to start with.
• Control officers will ask what happened, but this won’t delay any help getting to you.
• Even if you don’t have all of the information, still call 999. Don’t assume that somebody else has.
• When you call 999, try and remain as calm as possible.

For more information head to: https://www.london-fire.gov.uk/news/2019-news/august/think-before-you-film-urge-london-fire-brigade/