• Tuesday 17 May 2011
• posted by Oliver Brann
• Comments disabled

Let's just get on with the transcript of this strangest of telephone calls to 999.

As a South Wales Police spokeswoman states: "[This] was 100% legitimate. There was no hoax. It was a serious call from a member of the public.";

Control room: 'South Wales Police, what's your emergency?'

Caller: "It's not really. I just need to inform you that across the mountain there's a bright stationary object."

Control room: "Right."

Caller: "If you've got a couple of minutes perhaps you could find out what it is? It's been there at least half an hour and it's still there."

Control: "It's been there for half an hour. Right. Is it actually on the mountain or in the sky?"

Caller: "It's in the air."

Control: "I will send someone up there now to check it out."

Caller: "OK."

Within a few minutes a police patrol arrives at the scene - and the tape reveals the exchange between the control room and the officer sent to the scene.

Control: "Alpha Zulu 20, this object in the sky, did anyone have a look at it?"

Officer: "Yes, it's the moon. Over."

Is this the stupidest 999 call ever made? We believe it could be. Here's some more we've found though that are right up there;

• A female caller dialled 999 to ask what year the Internet started.
• A male caller dialled 999 to say that his wife had gone out without leaving any food to eat
• A female caller dialled 999 to report a grey squirrel with no hazelnut trees.
• A male caller dialled 999 to report that he had not been paid by the DSS (Social Services)

Remarkably these are all just from the Avon and Somerset Constabulary, who seem to get an awful lot of ridiculous 999 calls. We're not sure if there's a higher rate of them in that particular area or anything....You can read the transcripts for these crazy 999 calls at their website.