Of the 1.7 million 999 calls made in the first half of 2005, about 73% were nuisance or misdialled calls, the police says. They urge the public to make use of the 999 hotline service for emergencies only.

In the first six months of 2005, a total of 1,749,503 calls were answered by the Regional Command & Control Centres, of which only 470,388 or 26.9% were genuine calls. The remaining 1,279,115 or 73.1% were nuisance or misdialled calls.

The police said any abuse of the service will affect their efficiency in handling genuine emergencies.

It could put at risk the lives of people experiencing real emergencies by delaying their access to the 999 service, it said.

Police contact card available for free at stations

It added that Police stations could promptly handle most crime reports and requests of a non-emergency nature.

The "Police Contact Card" containing the telephone and fax numbers of all Police stations as well as Police hotlines is available for public collection at all Police stations and District Offices.