Paramedics were not on board emergency vehicles sent to thousands of 999 calls across the Black Country in the past four years, new figures reveal.
As a Shropshire heroine is praised and honored for her cations in America after saving a motorists from a car wreck - here are some other acts of bravery the Shropshire Star has covered.
This request for a drink of water is just one example of the shocking prank 999 calls made to West Midlands Ambulance Service on a regular basis.
Lost keys, a scary hedgehog, booking a taxi home, or wanting a drink of water - these are just some of the reasons people have called the West Midlands Ambulance Service.
Ambulance bosses today urged parents to teach youngsters the dangers of making hoax calls that could risk lives.
Ambulance staff were kept busy as revellers saw in the new year across Shropshire, with more crews on duty than ever before.
Police are preparing for the busiest night of the year - and are advising people to only use emergency services in a genuine emergency.
Christmas festivities increased the calls the ambulance service received by more than 10 per cent.
Calls to Shropshire's ambulance service hiked by more than 20 per cent on one of its busiest nights of the year.
It was the sort of accident that would stretch the emergency services to the limit.
Police 999 lines went down in Staffordshire today.
A woman attacked two medical staff in the back of an ambulance which was taking her to hospital, a court was told.
West Midlands Ambulance Service dealt with 70 hoax or inappropriate calls last month, new figures have revealed.
The ambulance trust that covers Shropshire dealt with almost 6,000 calls over the weekend.
A takeaway customer dialled 999 to complain to police that the wrong food order had been delivered to their home, it has been revealed.
