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Telephone number that allows caller to contact local emergency services for assistance

An emergency telephone number is a number that allows a caller to contact local emergency services for assistance. The emergency number differs from country to country; it is typically a three digit number so that it can be easily remembered and dialed quickly. Some countries have a different emergency number for each of the different emergency services; these often differ only by the last digit. In many countries, dialing either 112 (used in Europe and parts of Asia, Africa and South America) or 911 (used mostly in the Americas) will connect callers to emergency services. For individual countries, see the list of emergency telephone numbers.

The emergency telephone number is a special case in the country's telephone number plan. In the past, calls to the emergency telephone number were often routed over special dedicated circuits. Though with the advent of electronic exchanges these calls are now often mixed with ordinary telephone traffic, they still may be able to access circuits that other traffic cannot. Often the system is set up so that once a call is made to an emergency telephone number, it must be answered. Should the caller abandon the call, the line may still be held until the emergency service answers and releases the call. An emergency telephone number call may be answered by either a telephone operator or an emergency service dispatcher. The nature of the emergency (police, fire, medical, coast guard) is then determined. If the call has been answered by a telephone operator, they then connect the call to the appropriate emergency service, who then dispatches the appropriate help. In the case of multiple services being needed on a call, the most urgent need must be determined, with other services being called in as needed. Emergency dispatchers are trained to control the call in order to provide help in an appropriate manner; they can be assisted by computer aided call handling systems (CACH). The emergency dispatcher may find it necessary to give urgent advice in life threatening situations. Some dispatchers have special training in telling people how to perform first aid or CPR. In many parts of the world, an emergency service can identify the telephone number that a call has been placed from. This is normally done using the system that the telephone company uses to bill calls, making the number visible even for users who have unlisted numbers or who block caller ID. Enhanced 911 and similar systems like E112 can provide the location of landline callers by looking up the physical address in a database, and mobile callers through triangulation from towers or GPS on the device. This is often specifically mandated in a country's telecommunication law.

When an emergency happened in the pre dial (or "manual") telephone era, the user simply picked up the telephone receiver and waited for the operator to answer "number, please?" The user responded with "get me the police", "I'm calling to report a fire", or "I need an ambulance/doctor". Even in large cities, it was seldom necessary to ask for these services by number. In small towns, operators frequently provided additional services, knowing where to reach doctors, veterinarians, law enforcement personnel and firefighters at all times. Frequently, the operator was also responsible for activating the town's fire alarm. When manual switching systems began to be replaced by automatic, or "dial" systems, there was frequently concern among users that the very personalized emergency service provided by manual operators would be lost. Because numbers were different for every exchange, callers either had to dial the operator or look up the telephone number. An example of this was Auckland, New Zealand, before the introduction of 111 in the 1960s – the city had 40 exchanges, all with different emergency numbers, and finding the telephone number for the local exchange would require having to search through the city's 500 page telephone directory. This problem was at least partially solved in Canada, the UK, and the US by dialing "0" for the local assistance operator in case of emergency, although faster service could be obtained if the user dialed the full number for the Police or Fire Department. This system remained essentially unchanged throughout most of North America until the 1970s.

The first emergency number system to be deployed anywhere in the world was in London on 30 June 1937 using the number 999, and this was later extended to cover the entire country. The city changed the number to 911 in 1972, in order to be consistent with the newly adopted U. S. emergency number. Several other countries besides the UK have adopted 999 as their emergency number.

Southern California Telephone Co. began using 116 as an emergency line for Los Angeles, California in 1946.

In France, many telephone exchanges were closed at night but it was still possible to make emergency calls. An operator had to connect the emergency calls only. In 1913, an automatic system was set up. It made provision for calling the police by dialing 17 and the fire brigade by dialing 18. As more manual telephone exchanges were converted to dial operation, more and more subscribers had access to these special numbers. The service was not widespread until the 1970s. France now uses 112, the European emergency number, as well as 17 and 18 for police and fire brigade, specific to France.

The CEPT recommended the use of 112 in 1972. The European Union subsequently adopted the 112 number as a standard on 29 July 1991. It is now a valid emergency number throughout EU countries and in many other CEPT countries. It works in parallel with other local emergency numbers in about two out of three EU states.

The International Telecommunication Union has officially set two standard emergency phone numbers for countries to use in the future. AP reports that member states have agreed that either 911 or 112 should be designated as emergency phone numbers – 911 is currently used in North America, while 112 is standard across the EU and in many other countries worldwide.

In January 2008, the Internet Engineering Task Force released a set of RFC documents pertaining to emergency calls in IP networks.

Mobile phones can be used in countries with different emergency numbers. This means that a traveller visiting a foreign country does not have to know the local emergency numbers. The mobile phone and the SIM card have a preprogrammed list of emergency numbers. When the user tries to set up a call using an emergency number known by a GSM or 3G phone, the special emergency call setup takes place. The actual number is not even transmitted into the network, but the network redirects the emergency call to the local emergency desk. Most GSM mobile phones can dial emergency numbers even when the phone keyboard is locked, the phone is without a SIM card, emergency number is entered instead of the PIN or there is not a network signal (busy network). Most GSM mobile phones have 112, 999 and 911 as pre programmed emergency numbers that are always available. The SIM card issued by the operator can contain additional country specific emergency numbers that can be used even when roaming abroad. The GSM network can also update the list of well known emergency numbers when the phone registers to it. Using an emergency number recognized by a GSM phone like 112 instead of another emergency number may be advantageous, since GSM phones and networks give special priority to emergency calls. A phone dialing an emergency service number not recognized by it may refuse to roam onto another network, leading to trouble if there is no access to the home network. Dialing a known emergency number like 112 forces the phone to try the call with any available network. On some networks, a GSM phone without a SIM card may be used to make emergency calls, and most GSM phones accept a larger list of emergency numbers without SIM card, such as 112, 911, 118, 119, 000, 110, 08, and 999. However, some GSM networks will not accept emergency calls from phones without a SIM card, or even require a SIM card that has credit. For example, Latin American networks typically do not allow emergency calls without a SIM, nor British networks due to the prevalence of hoax calls. The GSM phones may regard some phone numbers with one or two digits as special service codes. It might be impossible to make an emergency call to numbers like 03 or 92 with a mobile phone. In those cases the emergency number has to be called by using a landline telephone or with an additional first/last digit (for example 922 or 992 instead of 92 and 003 or 033 instead of 03). In the United States, the FCC requires networks to route every mobile phone and payphone 911 call to an emergency service call center, including phones that have never had service, or whose service has lapsed. As a result, there are programs that provide donated used mobile phones to victims of domestic violence and others especially likely to need emergency services. Since 2020, emergency responders have been able to better locate callers who dial 911 on their cellphones from indoors as the U. S. wireless industry improved caller location for the majority of such calls. The "heightened location accuracy," available to supporting networks and handsets, can find callers through nearby devices connected to Wi Fi or Bluetooth that are logged with a specific location in a special emergency services database. Mobile phones generate additional problems for emergency operators, as many phones will allow emergency numbers to be dialed even while the keypad is locked. Since mobile phones are typically carried in pockets and small bags, the keys can easily be depressed accidentally, leading to unintended calls. A system has been developed in the UK to connect calls where the caller is sent to an automated system, leaving more operators free to handle genuine emergency calls.

As earlier telephone systems used loop disconnect dialing, attention was devoted to avoiding the number being dialed accidentally by errant interruptions of the circuits by making them involve long sequences of pulses, such as with the UK 999 emergency number.