PSP, which coordinates the service in Portugal, indicates that last year 112 received 7,066,088 calls, an average of 588,841 per month and 19,359 per day, which were answered in an average time of eight seconds.

According to the PSP, of the more than seven million calls, 1,394,502 were registered as emergencies, corresponding to the provision of assistance in 116,209 occurrences per month and 3,821 per day, which triggered the activation of 1,519,563 emergency services.

The PSP indicates that, as in previous years, also in 2022 there were no peaks due to seasonality but due to events such as large rural fires, road accidents involving several vehicles and floods, which lead to different people contacting 112 to report the same incident.

The Public Security Police reports that around 75% of all emergency calls to 112 last year were aimed at requesting support in situations of life-threatening illness or trauma or immediate need for medical assistance, followed by alerts for crimes in progress or that have just happened at the time of the call, road accidents and fires.

112 is a free emergency contact that operates 24 hours a day in the 27 Member States of the European Union. In Portugal, this service is operationally coordinated by the PSP and comprises the national coordination center and four operational centers operating in the North, South, Azores, and Madeira regions.

What is an emergency?

The PSP warns of the importance of citizens knowing in which situations they can resort to the emergency number 112, which contributes to quick help.

According to the police, emergencies to be reported to 112 are situations involving people at risk of death or in immediate need of medium assistance, crimes in progress or that have just happened at the time of the call, serious incidents such as floods, forest fires or serious road accidents, and discovery of missing children or elderly people.

The PSP also indicates that in any other situation, citizens should contact the local fire station or fire department directly and, in situations related to health, should call the National Health Service Contact Center - SNS 24, through 808242424.