page_title: 112 (emergency telephone number)
section_title: Origins
hierarchical_section_title: 112 (emergency telephone number) / Origins
caption_attribution_description: Nederlands: Cocaïne alert Amsterdam (In Amsterdam werden de afgelopen twee maanden zeventien vooral jonge toeristen slachtoffer van zogeheten `witte heroïne'. Heroïne, op straat verkocht als cocaïne, die in hoge doseringen veel gevaarlijker is en daarmee potentieel dodelijk. Drie jonge Britten stierven eraan.) English: Cocaïne alert sign dated December 20, 2014: "Currently extremely dangerous cocaïne is being sold in Amsterdam. Several tourists were hospitalized with life-threatening conditions after using cocaine bought on the street. Three tourists have died. So ignore street dealers. Research has revealed that the "cocaine" used was actually white heroin. If someone faints or starting breathing superficially or is not breathing at all — Call 112 for an ambulance!"
context_page_description: 112 is a common emergency telephone number that can be dialed free of charge from most mobile telephones, and in some countries, fixed telephones in order to reach emergency services.
  112 is a part of the GSM standard and all GSM-compatible telephone handsets are able to dial 112 even when locked or, in some countries, with no SIM card present. It is also the common emergency number in nearly all member states of the European Union as well as several other countries of Europe and the world. 112 is often available alongside other numbers traditionally used in the given country to access emergency services. In some countries, calls to 112 are not connected directly but forwarded by the GSM network to local emergency numbers.
context_section_description: The European Emergency Number Association, an organization of emergency services representatives and others, advocated for its introduction in the EU.
  112 was first standardised by a recommendation by the CEPT in 1972 and later by a decision of the EU Council in 1991 and subsequently reaffirmed in 2002 by article 26 of the Universal Service Directive and its subsequent amendments.
  This choice of number has been cited in logical terms as offering the following advantages:
  Different digits: with the numeric keypads widely used today, using at least two different digits instead of the same digit repeatedly significantly reduces the risk of accidental calls. Young children, vibrations, defective keys and collisions with other objects are much more likely to press the same key repeatedly than a particular sequence of different keys, particularly with a button-operated keypad. Accidental calls to emergency centres from mobile phones, which can dial emergency numbers even with locked keypad, are a particular problem with same-digit numbers, such as the UK's 999.
  Low digits: on rotary dial telephones, using only those digits that require the least dial rotation (1 and 2) permits a dial lock in hole 3 to effectively disable unauthorised access to the telephone network without preventing access to the emergency number 112. The same choice also maximises dialling speed. Additionally, with telephone systems using pulse dialling, briefly activating the hook once has the same effect as dialling "1", so repeatedly pushing the hook might result in calling 1-1-1. For this reason, Germany's police emergency number was changed from 111 to 110. With numeric keypads, pressing only the first and second button on the keypad is marginally easier in a difficult situation than other keys.
caption: A "cocaine alert" sign posted by GGD Amsterdam: the sign reminds people to "Call 112 for an ambulance."
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