8,710 Repeated Reports to 119 in One Year... Seoul Files Criminal Complaints Against Five Habitual Callers

4,034 Reports in Just Three Months
Unanswered Calls and Irrelevant Reports Disrupt Operations
Firm Response After Analyzing Report Details

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said on Friday that it had filed criminal complaints against five habitual callers who made a total of 8,710 repeated reports to 119 over the past year, disrupting emergency operations. The five made 4,034 reports in just the past three months and continued calling even after the Seoul Comprehensive Disaster Prevention Center sent them multiple warning texts.

The Seoul Comprehensive Disaster Prevention Center obtained records for the 10 people who made the most reports unrelated to 119 services over the past three months and analyzed the content, number and frequency of their reports. Based on the analysis, it reviewed whether the calls were intentional and whether they obstructed operations, after consulting the legal affairs team of the Fire and Disaster Management Headquarters' special judicial police unit.

Among the five people facing complaints, the highest individual totals were 2,661 phone calls and 2,886 text messages. Their conduct included calling and not responding, sending photos unrelated to an emergency report, speaking incoherently, and asking to be taken home while intoxicated.

The center sent multiple warning texts to those under consideration for criminal complaints, asking them to stop making repeated reports. When the reports continued, it reviewed their overall impact on emergency operations and decided to file criminal complaints against the five.

Repeated reports with identical or similar content can burden the 119 emergency operations center's ability to receive calls properly and may also affect its response to actual emergencies. Maintaining the 119 emergency reporting system smoothly is especially important to ensure a rapid response to fires, accidents, medical emergencies and other urgent situations in residents' daily lives.

The center plans to continue taking a comprehensive look at the content and number of reports, whether they were intentional, and their impact on emergency operations, and to respond firmly to conduct that interferes with the normal operations of the 119 emergency operations center. It aims to maintain a rapid and thorough response system for emergencies and make Seoul a safe city where residents can feel secure in their daily lives.

Hong Younggeun, head of the Seoul Metropolitan Fire and Disaster Headquarters, said, "The 119 emergency operations center is the starting point for emergency responses that protect residents' lives and safety, so its normal operations must not be disrupted by repeated reports. I ask for everyone's cooperation in establishing a responsible reporting culture so that 119 can respond quickly in emergencies."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.