Beijing Emergency Hotlines to Begin Accepting Calls in English

原创 Charles L. theBeijinger

Beijing expats in need of emergency assistance will soon be able to make calls by themselves as the city announced its emergency service hotlines will become fully English compliant.

Calls made to emergency hotlines such as the ambulance (120 or 999) will soon feature multilingual service, said the Beijing Municipal Commission of Health and Family Planning at a Monday news conference.

Under the new system, emergency hotline operators are to immediately connect to a multilingual third-party operator upon receiving a call from a non-Chinese speaker; the third party will then directly speak with the caller and then assist the hotline operator.

Additionally, Beijing expats can soon expect improved medical services throughout the city. The commission said hospital services including guidance, consultation, and registration will soon offer services in English just as all department signs will be made multilingual. To achieve its goals, the commission will look to English-training schools such as Beijing Language and Culture University to help develop a pool of multilingual talent.

The new policy comes after a renewed citywide effort this past spring to correct signs with poor English translations ahead of the 2022 Winter Olympic games.

To be absolutely clear, reports don't actually specify that the operators will be speaking in English, instead saying that they will speak a "foreign language" (外语 wàiyǔ). Given that this term is synonymous with English, we're very sure that asking Beijing hotlines for "help" will get you exactly what you need.

Do you need help? Here are the emergency hotlines you should keep in mind:

Police (hotline): 110
Police (by SMS): 12110
Ambulance (national hotline; includes Beijing municipality): 120
Ambulance (by Beijing Municipal Red Cross; exclusive to Beijing): 999
Fire: 119
Beijing Health Hotline: 12320 (website: 12320.gov.cn)
Traffic Accidents: 122