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Harry the Hoaxer
Harry the Hoaxer is a cartoon character created by Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service.
Pictures of Harry are used at Crucial Crew events as a visual resource to assist the firefighter in explaining the consequences of making hoax calls and committing the crime of arson.
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For a joke Harry, encouraged by his mates Billy and Verity, makes a hoax call to the Fire Service to look cool.
When appliances attend a hoax call the firefighters are not available for genuine emergencies
Ask yourself how you would feel if there was a fire at your home and the fire service couldn't turn up because they had gone to a hoax call?
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| Caller identification |
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We know where you are Harry!
- Our technology gives us your location and telephone number
- We record your voice to use as evidence
Dialling the prefix 141 does not block your identification
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In 2006-2007, SFRS received 422 malicious / hoax calls (mainly made by children who think it is a joke).
To reduce the problem the Fire Service has introduced a system entitled Call Challenging.
This procedure assists control room staff to verify a genuine call.
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- All calls register with immediate caller identification and your voice is recorded
- Your voice patterns are as individual as their fingerprint
- The 141 prefix does not block caller identification
- Details will be passed onto the Police for further action and the recorded information can be used if a decision is made to prosecute you
- Call challenging embarrasses some hoaxers and they often hang the phone up when questioned, but we still attend half of the hoax calls
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Since the Crucial Crew have been educating young people we have had a big reduction - through using call challenging we only actually attended 142.
The problems of hoax calls have begun to increase with young people owning mobile phones
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Do you have a mobile phone?
- New developments and partnerships with mobile phone companies and SFRS are helping to reduce the number of malicious calls and catch the young people who make the calls
- If we receive a malicious call from your mobile we will text you stating that we are aware you have made a malicious call from this number and if it continues SFRS will approach your server and get your phone signal barred
- You will lose any credit on your phone and will be liable for prosecution.
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Remember we have your number!
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Harry is lighting fires in the park and that he knows its wrong, but he is experiencing "peer pressure"
- What do you think Verity and Billy are saying to Harry?
- How do you think Harry is feeling?
Remember lighting fires on purpose or deliberately is a crime and you could be charged with arson or criminal damage.
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| Age of criminal responsibility |
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Did you know the age of criminal responsibility in this country is 10 years old?
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Arson means to set a fire on purpose or deliberately and it is a crime
- If you light a fire, it endangers people’s lives, and if you are caught and prosecuted, you may receive a maximum of 7 years in a young offender’s institute.
- If you light a fire on purpose or deliberately and it kills someone, you could receive a life sentence.
- If you are caught and prosecuted for making hoax calls then you could receive a custodial sentence.
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If you are 10 years or over - remember arson and hoax calls are a crime and you could be prosecuted
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Fire can spread fast, make sure you have a smoke alarm and an escape plan |
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Do not make hoax calls or start small fires in your community |
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A firefighter's job is to save you in an emergency and they get upset when they're sent to a hoax call because they are not available to rescue you from fires or road traffic accidents |
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The firefighters cannot be there quickly if the fire engine is delayed because silly people are making hoax calls or starting silly little fires in the park |
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Firefighters do not want to arrive too late to a genuine fire and bring you out in a body bag |
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Further information
Lynn Hosking
Youth Officer
01743 260 257
Chris Page
Scheme Administrator
01743 260 254
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