Abuse, arrests and lost parking spaces: Tweetathon reveals police force's problem calls

The force took the unusual step in publishing small details of every call it received to both the 999 and non-emergency 101 numbers from 7am onwards yesterday as part of a 24-hour "tweetathon".

Up to 7am this morning, there were 1,092 incidents recorded, including 21 missing people, 30 domestic incidents, 144 incidents of antisocial behaviour, seven sex offences, 124 concerns for the welfare of someone, five dwelling burglaries and 41 road traffic collisions.

• See the full list of calls in tweets here

It was part of a 10-day campaign with the aim of better informing the public about the wide range of things modern day police forces have to deal with.

The tweet did not confirm the location but said: "Report that a car was taking up someone's parking space. We confirmed with them that this is a civil matter."

Other tweets said: "Caller asking how can pay for hotel room if bank closed," and "999 call. Woman saying she didn't have an emergency, swore at the call handler and hung up."

But there were also more serious matters for officers to deal with.

Tweets of "real" crimes included numerous reports of burglaries and thefts in Telford, a report of sexting in Shropshire, and a suspected drink driver on the A5 in Oswestry.

Other tweets sent out included calls regarding domestic incidents in Telford, a report of stray horses on the A41 in the borough, an allegation of dangerous driving on the A5 in Shrewsbury and the rear panel of a car being spray-painted orange in Whitchurch.

Deputy Chief Constable Chris Singer said: "We carried out the 24-hour Tweetathon to give the public a frank and honest look at the nature of the calls we receive on both 999 and 101 and the variety of roles that we therefore perform in our communities as a result. Both Warwickshire and West Mercia Police took part.

"By sharing every incident and crime in the areas we serve we hope to demonstrate that, while arresting people and putting them behind bars is one of our duties, it is only a small part of our role."

The tweetathon officially launched a 10-day event – dubbed Operation Protect – which hopes to give local people a greater insight into the day-to-day trials, tribulations, successes and challenges for officers.