7 Ways to Call Emergency Services

2024 Author: Jason Gerald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 10:50

In many countries around the world, dialing “911” or “112” from a cell phone will connect you to emergency services. Failing that, this page lists the emergency telephone numbers for mobile and landlines in most countries around the world. Use the links in the Table of Contents to jump directly to the continent and country for the phone number you need.

Step

Method 1 of 7: Using Mobile (Cellular Phone) in Any Country

Step 1. Try dialing 911 or 112

These numbers apply to many mobile services around the world, thanks to the efforts of the European Union and the United States. Try those two numbers first, unless there is a local party who knows a special number for cell phones for that area.

Step 2. If both numbers fail, see the emergency service numbers by continent and country below:

• Africa
• Asia and Oceania
• Europe
• Central and South America
• the middle East
• North America and the Caribbean

Method 2 of 7: Emergency Numbers in Africa

Click this link to jump directly to the North, East, Central, West or South Africa region.

Step 1. Emergency Numbers in North Africa. The following countries include the Sahara desert and all of Africa to the north of the desert:

• Algeria:

  • Ambulance: 021 – 23 63 81 or 021 – 71 14 14
  • Police: 17 (or 021 – 73 53 50 from mobile)
  • Firefighters: 14 (or 021 – 71 14 14 from mobile)
• Canary Islands: 112

• Egypt:

  • Ambulance: 123
  • Police: 122
  • Fire Fighting: 180

• Libya:

  193 (currently unstable)

• Morocco:

  • Ambulance or Fire Engine: 15
  • Police: 19

• Sudan:

  Only local number available

• Tunis:

  • Ambulance: 190
  • Police: 197
  • Fire Fighting: 198

Step 2. Emergency Numbers in East Africa. The following are emergency numbers for the Horn of Africa region and countries throughout eastern Africa, including Madagascar.

• Burundi:

  Only local number available

• Djibouti:

  • Ambulance: 19
  • Police: 17
  • Fire Fighting: 18
• Eritrea: Only local number available

• Ethiopian:

  • Ambulance: 92
  • Police: 91
  • Fire Fighting: 93

• Kenya:

  For Any Emergency: 999

• Madagascar:

  • Ambulance: 124
  • Police: 117
  • Fire Fighting: 118
  • Traffic Accident: 3600

• Malawi:

  • Ambulance: 998
  • Police: 997 '''or''' 990
  • Fire Fighting: 999

• Mauritius:

  • Ambulance: 114
  • Police: 112 '''or''' 999
  • Fire Department: 115 ''''or''' 995

• Mozambique:

  • Ambulance: 117
  • Police: 119
  • Fire Fighting: 198

• Rwanda:

  • Ambulance:

    912

  • Police and Firefighters:

    112

• Somalia:

  (may be unstable or unavailable in some regions)

  • Ambulance: 999
  • Police: 888
  • Fire Fighting: 555

• South Sudan:

  • Police: 777 (On Juba only)
  • Ambulance and Fire Department: Not available

• Tanzania:

  (possibly unstable; try local numbers)

  • Ambulance: 115
  • Police: 112
  • Fire Fighting: 114

• Uganda:

  999

• Zambia:

  999 '''or''' 991

• Zimbabwe:

  • Ambulance: 994
  • Police: 777-777 (refer to Harare Central Station)
  • Fire Department: 993 '''or''' 783-983
  • Medical Assistance By Air: 771-221

Step 3. Emergency Numbers in Central Africa. See the following sections for information on Central African countries, and along the central west coast. (See West Africa's list below for countries along the northwest coast.)

• Angola:

  • Ambulance: 112
  • Police: 113
  • Fire Fighting: 115
  • If the Numbers above don't work: Try the following numbers for a different service: 110 or 118. A discrepancy between sources reflects a possible change or variation that has occurred recently or in that country.

• Cameroon: (only available in big cities)

  • Ambulance: 112 (try this first) ''''or''' 119
  • Police: 117
  • Fire Fighting: 118

• Central African Republic:

  117

• Chad:

  (possibly unstable or unavailable in many countries)

  • Ambulance: not available
  • Police: 17
  • Fire Fighting: 18
• Democratic Republic of the Congo: not available

• Republic of the Congo:

  (45 minute response time in Brazzaville, service barely available anywhere else in the country)

• For All Kinds of Emergency Situations: 112 ‘‘‘or’’’ +242 06 665-4804

• Gabon:

  • Ambulance: 1300
  • Police: 177 (in some areas), 01-76-55-85 (in Libreville), 07-36-22-25 (in Port Gentil)
  • Fire Department: 01-76-15-20 (in Libreville), 07-63-93-63 (in Port Gentil)

Step 4. Emergency Numbers in West Africa. This includes all sub-Saharan countries in the West African region. For countries along the southwest coast (south of the "bend"), see Central Africa above or South Africa below.

• Benin:

  • Ambulance: Only local numbers available.
  • Police: 117
  • Fire Fighting: 118

• Burkina Faso:

  10-10

• Gambia:

  (emergency teams often lack resources)

  • Ambulance: 116
  • Police: 117 or (220) 422-4914
  • Fire Fighting: 118

• Ghana:

  (many regions ask for local numbers)

  • Ambulance: 193'''or''' 776111-5
  • Police: 191'''or''' 999'''or''' 171
  • Fire Fighting: 192

• Guinea:

  Only local numbers available.

• Guinea-Bisseau: (many regions ask for local numbers)

  • Ambulance: 119
  • Police: 121
  • Fire Fighting: 180

• Ivory Coast:

  111

• Liberia:

  911 (very unstable and no landline service in the country)

• Mali:

  (many regions ask for local numbers)

  • Ambulance: 15'''or'' 112
  • Police: 17 '''or''' 18
  • Fire Department: 17 '''or''' 18''' or'' 112

• Mauritania:

  • Ambulance: 118 (Frequently long delays; seek alternative transport if possible)
  • Police: 117
  • Gendarmerie: 116 (military law applies, only for use outside the city area)
  • Fire Fighting: 118
  • Traffic Accident: 117 ''''or''' 119

• Nigeria:

  • Police: 17 '''or''' +227-20-72-25-53 (Unstable, and only available during business hours)
  • Ambulance and Fire Department: Not available

• Nigeria:

  • Ambulance and Police: 199
  • Fire Fighting: Not available

• Senegalese:

  • Police: 33-821-2431 ''''or''' 800-00-20-20 ''''or''' 800-00-17-00
  • Tourism Police: (221) 33 860-3810
  • Ambulance and Fire Department: Not available

• Sierra Leone:

  (many regions ask for local numbers)

  • Ambulance and Police: 999
  • Fire Fighting: 019

• Togo:

  117

Step 5. Emergency Numbers in South Africa. The following are the emergency numbers in South African countries:

• Botswana:

  • Ambulance: 997
  • Police: 999
  • Fire Fighting: 998

• Lesotho:

  (possibly unstable)

  • Police: (266) 2231 2934 “‘‘or’’’ (266) 2232 2099
  • Other Emergency Services: Only local numbers available

• Namibia:

  112

• South Africa:

  10111

• Swaziland:

  999

Method 3 of 7: Emergency Numbers in Asia and Oceania

Click on the following links to jump straight to East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Central Asia or Oceania.

Step 1. Emergency Numbers in East Asia. This list includes China and other countries in East Asia, including Japan.

• China, mainland

  • Ambulance: 120
  • Police: 110
  • Fire Fighting: 119
  • Traffic Accident: 122
• Republic of China: See Taiwan

• Hong Kong:

  999

• Macau:

  999

• Japan

  • Ambulance or Fire: 119
  • Police: 110
• North Korea: It may ask for a local station number, but try 819, 112, or 119.

• Mongolia

  • Ambulance: 103
  • Police: 102
  • Fire Fighting: 101

• South Korea:

  • Ambulance or Fire: 119
  • Police: 112

• Taiwan

  • Ambulance or Fire: 119
  • Police: 110

Step 2. Emergency Numbers in South Asia. The following numbers cover the countries in the Indian sub-continent.

• Afghanistan

  • Ambulance: 112 for Kabul (020-112 from mobile). Outside Kabul, use local numbers only.
  • Police: 119 directed to Kabul, Kandahar and Lashkar Gah. For local service in other regions, you must dial the local number.

• Bangladesh (may need local number outside Dhaka and Chittagong)

  • Ambulance: 199 '''or''' 9-555-555 '''or''' 9132023 ''''or''' 8122041
  • Police: 999-2222 '''' or''' 9551188 ''''or''' 9514400 ''''or''' 01713398311

• Bhutan

  • Ambulance or Medical Advice: 112
  • Police: 113
  • Fire Fighting: 110
  • Traffic Accident: 111
  • If the numbers above fail: Bhutan's emergency numbers are not consistently reported, possibly due to changes or new variations across the country. If you fail to connect, try the numbers listed for another service, or try calling 115.

• India

  • Ambulance: 102
  • Police: 100
  • Fire Fighting: 101
  • Traffic Accident: 103
  • For All Emergencies: 108 (available in some areas only)

• Maldives

  • Ambulance: 102
  • Police: 119
  • Fire Fighting: 118 ''''or''''' 108 '''''''' 999

• Nepal

  • Ambulance: 102 (managed by non-profit organization in mostly Kathmandu and Patan), 4228094 (Red Cross in Kathmandu)
  • Ambulances in other areas: Call a local ambulance or taxi.
  • Police: 100 or a local station
  • Fire Fighting: 101

• Pakistan:

  • Ambulance: 115
  • Police: 15
  • Fire Fighting: 16

• Sri Lanka: (some regions ask for local number)

  • Ambulance or Fire Department: 110 (‘‘‘or’’’ 011-2422222 in Colombo)
  • Police: 118 ''''or''' 119 ('''or''' 011-2433333 in Colombo)
  • Tourism Police: 011-2421052

Step 3. Emergency Numbers in Southeast Asia. These numbers are valid in all countries east of Bangladesh and south of China, as well as in the countries of peninsular Malaysia.

• Brunei:

  • Ambulance: 991 '''or''' 222366
  • Police: 993 '''or''' 423901
  • Fire Department: 995 ''''or''' 222555
• Burma: See Myanmar.

• Cambodia:

  • Ambulance: 119
  • Police: 117
  • Fire Fighting: 118

• Indonesia:

  • Ambulance: 118 ''''or''' 119
  • Police: 110 '''or''' 112
  • Fire Fighting: 113

• Laos:

  • Ambulance: 195
  • Police: 191
  • Fire Fighting: 190

• Malaysia:

  • Police or Ambulance: 999
  • Fire Fighting: 999 or 994
  • Tourism Police: 03 2149 6590

• Myanmar:

  • Ambulance: 192
  • Police: 199
  • Fire Fighting: 191

• Philippines:

  117

• Singapore:

  • Ambulance or Fire Department: 995
  • Police: 999

• Thailand:

  • Ambulance or Police: 191
  • Fire Fighting: 199

• Vietnamese:

  • Ambulance: 115
  • Police: 113
  • Fire Fighting: 114

Step 4. Emergency Numbers in Central Asia. These countries are landlocked regions of Central Asia. Please remember that Afghanistan belongs to South Asia; Russia entered European territory; and Mongolia are included in the East Asia region.

• Kazakhstan:

  (likely using 112, but more likely to be directed to one of the numbers below)

  • Ambulance: 103
  • Police: 102
  • Fire Fighting: 101
  • Gas Leakage: 104

• Kyrgyzstan:

  • Ambulance: 103
  • Police: 102
  • Fire Fighting: 101

• Tajikistan:

  • Ambulance: 03
  • Police: 02
  • Fire Fighting: 01

• Turkmenistan:

  03

• Uzbekistan:

  (Add 1 while in Tashkent city)

  • Ambulance: 03
  • Police: 02
  • Fire Fighting: 01

Step 5. Emergency Numbers in Oceania. This includes Australia and the Pacific island nations. Note that Oceania countries with populations under 800,000 are not included.

• Australia: 000

• Fiji:

  • Ambulance and Fire: 911
  • Police: 917
• New Zealand: 111
• Papua New Guinea: 111

Method 4 of 7: Emergency Numbers in Europe

Number 112 applies in many European countries. To see exceptions for each region, click on the following links for Southeastern Europe, Eastern Europe, and Northern, Central, and Western Europe.

Step 1. Number 112 in most countries

Most European countries use the number 112 as an emergency number for all situations, including every country in the European Union. Only countries that do not use 112 are listed below.

Many countries use additional emergency numbers that are specific to that country, but 112 will direct you to the same emergency services

Step 2. Emergency Numbers in Southeastern Europe. Most countries here use 112, or they are too small to be included in this list (populations of less than a million people). Here are the larger exception countries:

• Albania:

  129 (unstable emergency services)

• Bosnia and Herzegovina:

  • Ambulance: 124
  • Police: 122
  • Fire Fighting: 123

• Macedonian:

  • Ambulance: 194
  • Police: 192

• Serbia:

  (include area code if calling from mobile)

  • Ambulance: 194
  • Police: 192
  • Fire Fighting: 193
  • Roadside Assistance: 1987

• Turkey:

  • All Emergency Situations (including ambulance): 155
  • Ambulance only: 112

Step 3. Emergency Numbers in Eastern Europe. This includes the countries of the former Soviet Union and the surrounding Slavic countries. All countries not listed below use 112 or have a population of less than a million people.

• Belarus:

  • Ambulance: 103
  • Police: 102
  • Fire Fighting: 101

• Moldova:

  • Ambulance: 903
  • Police: 902
  • Fire Fighting: 901

• Russia:

  • Fire Department: 01 ''''or''' 101
  • Police: 02 '''or''' 102
  • Ambulance: 03 ''''or''' 103

• Ukraine:

  (there is a long pause and it's hard to connect)

  • Ambulance: 103
  • Police: 102
  • Fire Fighting: 101

Step 4. Emergency Numbers in Northern, Central or Western Europe. Nearly all countries in the region use the number 112 for all emergency services, although there may be alternative numbers with similar results. The following are exception numbers that apply to countries with a population of more than a million people:

• Norway:

  • Ambulance: 113
  • Police: 112
  • Fire Fighting: 110

• Switzerland:

  • General Emergency Services: 112
  • Ambulance: 144
  • Police: 117
  • Fire Fighting: 118
  • Poisoning: 145 (better call an Ambulance first)
  • Flying Ambulance (REGA): 1414
• UK and Ireland: 999

Method 5 of 7: Emergency Numbers in Central and South America

Click on the following links to jump straight to Central or South America.

Step 1. Emergency Numbers in Central America. The list below includes countries in Mexico's main North and South America regions, with populations of over a million people.

• Costa Rica: 911
• El Salvador: 911

• Guatemala:

  • Ambulance or Fire Department: 123 ''''or''' 122
  • Police: 110 '''or''' 120

• Honduras: (phone service may be unstable)

  • Ambulance: 195 (Red Cross)
  • Police: 911 '''or''' 112
  • Fire Fighting: 198

• Nicaragua:

  • Ambulance: 128
  • Police: 118 (Spanish) ‘‘‘or’’’ 101 (tourism service in English)
  • Fire Department: 115 ''''or''' 911

• Panama:

  • For All Emergencies: 911
  • Direct Contact to Police: 104

Step 2. Emergency Numbers in South America

Below are emergency services for all countries of more than a million people on the South American continent.

• Argentina:

  • Provinces of Cordoba, Mendoza, Iguazu, Tucuman and Tierra del Fuego: 101
  • Other provinces: 911
• Bolivia: 110

• Brazil:

  • Ambulance: 192
  • Police: 190
  • Fire Fighting: 193

• Chile:

  • Ambulance: 131
  • Police: 133
  • Fire Fighting: 132
• Colombia: 123

• Ecuador:

  • Quito and Ibarra: 911
  • Guayaquil, Cuenca and Loja,: 112
  • Other Regions, Ambulance: 102 (or 131 for Red Cross)
  • Other Territories, Police: 101
  • Other Areas, Fire Fighting: 102

• Paraguay:

  • For Any Emergency: 911
  • Go to Fire or Rescue Services: 131 '''' or''' 132

• Peru:

  • Police: 105
  • Fire Fighting: 116
  • Alternate Number: Try 011 '''or''' 5114
  • Tourist Protection: 424 2053 (add area code 01 in front if outside Lima)
• Uruguay: 911
• Venezuela: 171

Method 6 of 7: Emergency Numbers in the Middle East

Step 1. Emergency Numbers in the Middle East

This includes all the countries of the Arabian peninsula and some of the surrounding countries. For Egypt, see North Africa. For Turkey, see Southeastern Europe.

• Bahrain: 999

• Iran:

  • Ambulance: 115
  • Police: 110
  • Fire Fighting: 125
• Iraq: 130 (including cell phone)

• Israel:

  • Ambulance: 101
  • Police: 100
  • Fire Fighting: 102
  • (The West Bank and Gaza use the same numbers)

• Jordan:

  • For All Emergencies: 191
  • Another number, in parts of Amman: 911
• Kuwait: 112
• Lebanese: 112
• Oman: 9999

• Palestine:

  • Ambulance: 101
  • Police: 100
  • Fire Fighting: 102
• Qatar: 999
• Saudi Arabia: 999

• Syria:

  • Ambulance: 110
  • Police: 112
  • Fire Fighting: 113
• United Arab Emirates: 999
• Yemen: 199

Method 7 of 7: Emergency Numbers in North America and the Caribbean

Step 1. Emergency Numbers in North America. Please note that the main countries south of Mexico are listed as part of Central America.

• Canada:

  911

• Mexico:

  066

• United States of America:

  911

Step 2. Emergency Numbers in the Caribbean. All countries in the Caribbean islands with a population of more than 350,000 people are listed here. Please note that Martinique, Guadalupe and a number of other islands are part of the French West Indies.

• Cuba:

  • Ambulance: 114 or 118 (There are frequent long delays and poor telephone connections. Most high quality services use local numbers, may be willing to serve foreigners only, and require payment in advance)
  • Police: 106
  • Fire Fighting: 105
• Dominican Republic: 911

• French West Indies:

  • Ambulance: 15
  • Police: 18
  • Fire Fighting: 17
• Haiti: 114
• Yamaika: 119
• Puerto Rico: 911

• Trinidad and Tobago:

  • Ambulance: 990 ‘‘‘or’’’ 811 (or 694-2404 for private ambulance service)
  • Police: 999
  • Fire Fighting: 990

Tips

• In many European and African countries, 116 or 116-1111 is a special line of help for children, or for reporting the loss of a child.
• When traveling abroad, do not assume that emergency services in your country will be available. Always have an interpreter ready or at least easy to reach by phone.
• Please note that in some countries, there is no national emergency telephone number at all. If this is the case, you should immediately call the local service number. This is generally the case if the country you are looking for is not listed here.

Warning

• Do not use these numbers for anything other than an urgent emergency. If you play around with people who do need emergency assistance, they risk losing their lives, wasting public resources and you could be subject to criminal penalties.
• In many countries, an unverified emergency call is likely to go unanswered. If the background noise is getting worse and the call is getting more suspicious, the better your chances of getting a response.