A PIONEERING scheme using covert cameras to catch hoaxers who put lives at risk by calling out the fire service for fun has been declared a success.

The first partnership of its kind between police, a fire service, local councils and security firms has helped cut the number of malicious calls in an area which has the country's highest number of false 999 calls.

Yesterday, Cleveland Fire Service, Cleveland Police and four councils said the Box Clever scheme was saving lives. Using covert cameras and council security camera networks, the fire service and councils alert police to public telephones from which repeated hoax 999 calls are made.

The fire emergency control room staff can sometimes detect a prank call and ask security cameras monitors to focus on the relevant phone box. Resulting images are beamed direct to police headquarters and officers sent to investigate, while cameras continue to track the suspects as they leave the scene.

Now the police are seeking to use the same methods to cut out phone box vandalism and hoax calls to ambulance services.

Cleveland Fire Divisional Officer Bob Wood said: "We are the blackspot in the country for malicious calls. We had 2,419 calls last year, but have seen a steady fall since 1996 of about a third.

"There was a big fall since we introduced Box Clever in May and we have caught several people, both adults and children, in the act.

"Hoax calls are an enormous waste of time and resources and could cost lives, because we should be fighting a real fire instead.''

Four people have been prosecuted for making hoax calls.