BOLTON'S chief firefighter says he will continue to show zero tolerance towards people found making hoax calls.

Borough commander Vinny Simpson said it was important to hammer home the message that false calls endanger lives and waste firefighters' resources.

And he paid tribute to the Bolton Evening News' Shop A Hoaxer campaign which we launched last week in conjunction with the fire service.

As part of our campaign, recordings of hoax calls were placed on our website - www.boltoneveningnews.co.uk - and we asked readers if they could help to identify the voices. More than 4,500 people logged on to listen to the hoax calls and police are sifting through the information our readers passed on to them. You can still listen to the hoax calls by logging on to our website.

Mr Simpson said: "After 28 years service with Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, I never cease to be amazed and appalled that some people concoct such elaborate and convincing lies to waste the finite valuable fire and rescue services of Bolton.

"My staff are in the business of saving lives and reducing the impact of fires and other emergencies, whether by attending incidents or through education and enforcement.

"Every hoax call we attend could have disastrous consequences for innocent people in real need, and for firefighters and other road users while fire engines, police and ambulance vehicles proceed under emergency conditions through today's heavy traffic."

Bolton's firefighters were called out to 306 hoaxes between April 2005 and March this year - nearly one a day - at a total cost of more than £500,000.

All 999 calls are traced and recorded and the fire service collaborates with mobile phone providers and can request that phones be disconnected.

Those found to have made hoax calls can be fined £80 on the spot or be sent to court, which could result in either a £5,000 fine or six months in prison.

Mr Simpson said the Bolton Evening News Shop A Hoaxer campaign could help to make a real difference and bring "mindless idiots to justice".

He said: "The people who make hoax calls do not care about the safety of the people who live in a visit our town and they do not care about the safety of firefighters, police officers or ambulance staff who have to respond.

"Well I do care, and I will continue to lead the charge with a zero tolerance stance of all hoax callers."