In March 2026, a woman from Döbling in Vienna called the emergency services after her husband complained of chest pain, cold sweats and nausea. The seriousness of the situation, as recognised by the wife, was later confirmed. She reacted perfectly and, whilst administering first aid, alerted the emergency services via the European emergency number 112. The tragic suspicion: a heart attack.
Emergency call via 112 – police answered but did not help
After the Viennese woman had dialled the European emergency number 112, she was put through to the Vienna Police’s regional control centre. Despite the clear symptoms she described, the dispatcher failed to recognise that this was an acute, life-threatening emergency. The police officer’s response, which was anything but helpful, was: “I’m sorry, I can’t help you with that. You’ve got through to the police emergency line.” The officer did not transfer the emergency call to the ambulance service.
After half a minute had passed without any action being taken by the police emergency service, and with precious time being needlessly wasted, the completely bewildered caller hung up and dialled the ambulance service’s emergency number, 144, herself. It was there that the urgently needed emergency response was finally set in motion.
Education and prevention are the order of the day
The Austrian Ombudsman Board became aware of the case following a complaint lodged by the couple concerned. An investigation was immediately launched by the parliamentary oversight body, and the Ministry of the Interior was confronted with the serious allegations.
However, Ombudsperson Luisser considers the content of the Ministry of the Interior’s responses to him to be unacceptable. The Ministry, without any self-criticism, complains that, according to the call log, the caller hung up after 26 seconds and that it was therefore not possible for the police to take appropriate action.
“If, after a mere 26 seconds, the emergency services are not mobilised by the police emergency line, serious shortcomings become apparent. In an emergency situation where every second is a matter of life and death, mistakes of this kind must not be allowed to happen,” said Ombudsperson Christoph Luisser.
“I expect a clear commitment to a proactive culture of learning from mistakes. Shifting the blame onto the wife, who was left to fend for herself, after the event is more than reprehensible. Placing the entire blame on the police officer is also unacceptable. Our police officers do their very best every day and deserve our utmost gratitude. Nevertheless, such shortcomings must be fully investigated and rectified.
“I therefore recommend that the Ministry of the Interior and the Vienna Police apologise to the couple concerned and set about developing preventive measures in a transparent manner,” the Ombudsperson concluded.
European emergency number 112
The European emergency number 112 is a standardised European emergency number designed to connect callers as quickly as possible to the nearest control centre for the ambulance service, fire brigade or police in the event of an emergency. In Austria, the 112 emergency number has been in operation since 1993. Incoming calls must be answered and, where necessary, forwarded to other control centres to ensure the continuity of the emergency response chain.
Further useful information can be found via the following link: European emergency number 112 – a single telephone number for Europe – Federal Chancellery of Austria
