POLICE are asking the public to stay on the line during 999 calls after almost 5,000 calls were abandoned in May.

West Mercia Police received almost 20,000 calls last month, and 4,791 were abandoned, equating to about 155 abandoned 999 calls every day.

This figure is an increase of 100 per cent in abandoned 999 calls compared to May 2022.

Each time a call gets abandoned, call handlers have to spend time investigating if the person who made the call is safe.

Carrie Solomon, public contact chief inspector, said: “With every abandoned call, we need to check on the caller’s welfare, which means in some cases, we’ll dispatch an officer to find them.

“Our call handlers will try to phone the person back, but if they can’t get through, they’ll contact their network supplier to pinpoint where they are.

“We can’t assume that the person is okay – and every second counts in an emergency.”

West Mercia Police say that the vast majority of abandoned calls are accidental, and improvements to phone and smartwatch software, means it is easier to pocket dial.

Chief inspector Solomon said: “Phone users usually hang up quickly out of panic and embarrassment – but please stay on the line and let us know you’re ok.

“We understand that accidental calls like this happen to everyone at some point. The key thing is letting us know you’re safe – you’re not in any trouble!

“So to help us out, stay on the line and have a quick conversation with our call handler and let them know what has happened, then we can close the call. We’d much rather spend a couple of minutes on the phone with you than an hour tracking you down.”