Woman venting about Donald Trump being elected US president among most moronic 000 calls made to WA Police

A woman calling to vent her frustrations about Donald Trump being elected US president, a male asking for help to change his car tyre and even a person requesting assistance to find their lost television remote. These are among the thousands of moronic and time-wasting triple-0 requests received by WA Police last year. Of the 44,275 triple-0 calls made to police in 2024, one in 10 were regarded as “non-emergencies” and redirected to a lower priority queue. These included a woman reporting ducks crossing a busy highway, a man asking for help to change a tyre, a person needing help finding their TV remote and a woman calling to rant about American politics. Bizarrely, one man even called triple-0 because his neighbour’s tree was blocking his view. Superintendent Rohan Ingles, of the state communications division, said the vast majority of people called triple-0 for the right reasons, but said there were a “handful” of people who did not. He said these calls wasted critical time that could be used to save people’s lives. “Misusing the emergency line by reporting trivial or non-urgent matters delays our ability to respond to genuine emergencies and puts lives at risk,” Supt Ingles told The West. “Triple-0 is a critical service. When someone calls for police help in a life-threatening situation, every second is crucial.” Supt. Ingles urged callers to call 131 444 in non-emergency situations and said non-essential triple-0 calls “tied up critical resources”. Of the 1.2 million calls made to WA Police in the past 12 months, 786,500 were made to 131 444. “There are many situations which are clearly not emergencies, and those calls tie up critical resources,” Supt Ingles said. “There is no benefit to calling triple-0 in the hope of a faster service than 131 444. “Non-urgent calls are quickly identified and rerouted to a lower priority queue.” Triple-0 should only be reserved for emergencies, including situations where someone is seriously injured or in need of urgent medical help, witnessing a serious accident or crime, or when life or property is at risk. People misusing triple-0 in WA can be charged with creating a false belief — an offence which carries a maximum penalty of 12 months imprisonment and a $12,000 fine.