SIBU: The Fire and Rescue Department (bomba), Sibu Zone received a total of 4,420 crank calls last year.The average number of prank calls received by the call centre was between 5.9 and 18.45 per day.
Sibu zone bomba chief Superintendent Abdul Mutalib Rashid said the number of calls would shoot up during school holidays.
There are seven stations under Sibu zone — Sibu Central, Sungai Merah, Bintangor, Sarikei, Kanowit, Kapit and Mukah. He said last year, most cases were recorded in January and March with 572 cases each.
“The month of November recorded the fewest cases with 177 cases,” he said yesterday.
Mutalib said for February they received 382 cases, April (422), May (286), June (303), July (361) August (412), September (374), October (204) and December (355).
“The trend is worrisome as we believe the callers are mostly school students or teenagers,” he said.
On what the callers normally did when FRD personnel answered their calls, Mutalib said some just remained silent, while others just hung up when the person in charge tried to get more details.
He advised parents to monitor their children more closely.
“Because, normally when this happens it’s the parents who would be in trouble,” he said.
Those caught abusing the 994 or 999 emergency numbers can be charged under the Communication and Multimedia Act (CMA) 1998.