HOAX callers who send soldier fire fighters out on false alarms will be prosecuted.

That was the pledge made by a police chief as work began to track down malicious callers responsible for sending Teesside's handful of Green Goddesses out on nine hoax calls.

Chief Superintendent Jeff Evans, operations director with Cleveland Police, said: "We are actively looking at ways we can bring these people who have made hoax calls to court. It is a criminal offence. We will seek to prosecute.''

It emerged today that an army fire truck was involved in a collision answering a call on Teesside which turned out to have been a hoax call.

The appliance was lightly damaged in the bump with a car in a cul de sac in Stockton.

The Goddess was examined by a qualified vehicle inspector and "allowed straight back on the road'', an army spokesman said.

Mr Evans urged parents to talk their children out of making hoax calls to avoid serious consequences for them - and for someone who might genuinely need the rescue service.

The police chief said: "I would urge all families to sit down and talk about issues; talk about the irresponsibility of people who would do this, of making hoax telephone calls. They are diverting resources which may be urgently required elsewhere.

"Everytime an appliance goes to a hoax call it might be required for a life-threatening situation elsewhere. It is innately irresponsible of those callers and it is quite dangerous.''

Lieutenant Colonel David Amos in charge of Teesside's Green Goddesses, said: "We had nine hoax calls.

"It's regrettable, it's time wasting. It increases the risk potential of resources not being there for a life threatening situation. We need the co-operation of the population.''

A BT spokesman said of Mr Evans's threat, "We support the police on this - and the calls can be traced. We do work closely with the police.''