Warning issued as emergency phone line 999 not connecting, here's who to call instead

Brits were urged touse alternative options after emergency 999 calls failed to connect across the UK this morning. The problem was caused by technical issues with the phone lines.

The Metropolitan Police, Police Scotland, South Wales Police, Greater Manchester Police and the Police Service Northern Ireland (PSNI) all issued warning messages on Twitter.

Network provider BT reassured that the situation was ‘fast-moving’ and that the problem is being fixed.

Here is what to do if you are still impacted by a 999 line glitch.

Meanwhile, Tesco and Sainsbury's issued an urgent recall of this popular snack over a choking hazard.

People were also reminded to check their post to avoid losing thousands of pounds in tax credit.

Brits on housing benefits were also warned about a major change in the way they are paid, find out how it affects you.

What happened to the 999 emergency line?

Multiple emergency 999 calls failed to connect this morning due to a technical issue on network provider BT’s side.

The spokesman for the company said:

There is an issue affecting the national 999 call system.

They reassured that BT engineers were working to resolve it as soon as possible and urged people to use alternative ways to get help.

The situation was revealed by Metropolitan Police, with Police Scotland, South Wales Police, Greater Manchester Police and the Police Service Northern Ireland (PSNI) having issued warnings too.

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The emergency line down: here’s where to call instead

Brits were given different options for where to call instead of 999.

They were also asked to ‘only call in an emergency’ and wait with any non-vital calls until later.

Met Police said in a statement:

Until further notice, please call 101 in an emergency.

Although they warned that their advice was only applicable to people in London, the issue was impacting callers nationwide.

Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue and Leicestershire Fire Control told people in their regions to instead call 111. Included in these are Greater Manchester Police, West Midlands Police, South Wales Police and Bedfordshire Police.

NHS has also advised people to call 111.

BT has earlier said it was attempting to get the line back on track and have put a backup platform in place.

Although the company has just issued a statement confirming that the network glitch was fixed, some people may still experience difficulties as it is not known how the problem impacted the services in different parts of the country.

BT said:

The situation is fast-moving as we fix the problem and our backup platform is now working – so people should call 999 as usual. We will provide updates as the issue is resolved.

If you are still experiencing trouble calling 999, call 101 or 111 instead.

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Sources used:

- Independent: 'Chaos as emergency 999 calls not connecting'