UAE Emergency Numbers: The Complete List for All Seven Emirates

Three numbers. 999 for police, 998 for an ambulance, 997 for fire. They work in every single emirate, they work at 3am, and they cost nothing to call. If you take one thing from this page, take that.

The UAE runs a second layer of numbers under those three, and half of them change depending on where you live. A power cut in Ajman goes to a different number than a power cut in Dubai. A gas leak in Sharjah is its own thing again. I checked every number here against official channels in July 2026, because the internet is full of lists still carrying numbers that died years ago.

The Main UAE Emergency Numbers

Six of these work anywhere in the country, from any phone, including one with no credit left on it.

Can’t remember which is which in the moment? Nobody can. Dial 999 and the operator will push you through to the right service. You’ll get Arabic and English for sure, and often a few other languages depending on who picks up.

What to Say When You Call

Location first, then the problem. Not the other way round. If your call drops ten seconds in, a dispatcher holding a clear address can still send someone. A dispatcher holding a vivid description of the fire and no address cannot.

1. Say where you are. Building or hotel name, street, area, which emirate. Add a landmark too, “opposite the metro station” kind of thing, because half the towers in this country share a name with three others.
2. Then what’s happening. One line does it. “Kitchen fire, lots of smoke.” “Two cars, one person bleeding.”
3. How many people are involved and what shape they’re in.
4. And stay on the line until they tell you to hang up. Not before.

They can trace a mobile call to 999, sure. Don’t lean on that. Just say the address.

Emergency Numbers in Dubai

Knowing what information to give the dispatcher can speed up assistance. Once your call is received, the UAE National Ambulance emergency response system coordinates with emergency services to send the nearest available medical team as quickly as possible.

For an actual emergency in Dubai you’re still on 999, 998 and 997. Everything else in the emirate runs on the numbers below.

• 901, the Dubai Police non-emergency line, open round the clock. A noise complaint at 2am, a question about a fine, that kind of thing. It all goes here instead of 999.
• Al Ameen sits on 800 4888. That’s Dubai Police’s confidential reporting service, and there’s an SMS route on 4444. No one has to give a name.
• 991 is DEWA, for power cuts and water failures.
• Dubai Municipality answers on 800 900. Food poisoning, public health complaints.
• 800 111 is the Dubai Foundation for Women and Children, 24 hours.
• And the Dubai Coast Guard keeps a direct line on 056 682 4343, though 996 gets you there too.

A quick word on car crashes, because that’s the one most of us will actually deal with someday. Nobody hurt? Move the car onto the shoulder, then stand a good 15 metres back from it. Someone hurt? Touch nothing, leave the cars where they sit, call 999. If Dubai traffic is your daily life anyway, have a look at the Dubai public transport upgrade piece we ran recently. Your commute is about to change shape.

Emergency Numbers in Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi built its own layer on top of the national numbers, more than any other emirate bothered to.

• The police call centre for non-urgent matters is 800 3333.
• Aman, the confidential security line, is 800 2626, with SMS on 2828.
• ADDC takes electricity and water problems on 800 2332. They also keep an outage map online that refreshes every 15 minutes. Handy when you only want to know why the lights went out and don’t fancy a phone queue.
• 800 1717 is Istijaba, a Department of Health line for patients already admitted somewhere in the emirate who need urgent help with their care.
• And people of determination can text 5999 in a medical emergency. What happened, where the patient is, a callback number. That’s the whole message.

There’s also the AD999 app from Abu Dhabi Police. One SOS button that reports a fire, calls an ambulance or rings the emergency line for you. Get it on your phone now, while you’re calm.

Emergency Numbers in Sharjah

Sharjah’s non-emergency police line is 901. Yes, the same 901 as Dubai. It’s been that way since 2015 and it still confuses people.

• Najeed, the confidential reporting line from Sharjah Police, is on 800 151. SMS goes to 7999.
• 991 is SEWA here, and SEWA covers gas as well as power and water. So a gas smell goes to 991. If something’s already burning, that’s 997.
• 800 700 is one toll-free line shared by the child protection centre and the women’s protection centre in the emirate.

Sharjah Police put out the same reminder pretty much every year: stop ringing 999 about parking. Every pointless call on that line delays help for someone in real trouble. 901 exists for exactly this reason.

Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah

For the four northern emirates there’s nothing new to learn on the emergency side. 999, 998, 997, 996 and 995 behave exactly the same in Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah.

Utilities are the difference. Etihad Water and Electricity covers all four, and the failure line is 800 3392. Same number works on WhatsApp, or there’s the Etihad WE app if you hate phone calls.

A couple of local support lines too. Ajman has the Hemaya Foundation for Children and Women on 800 446292. Ras Al Khaimah runs the Aman Centre for Women and Children through RAK Police on 07 235 6666. Umm Al Quwain and Fujairah never set up their own, so the national helplines further down do that job there.

Power, Water and Gas Emergencies by Emirate

Blackout numbers depend entirely on your address. People who move between emirates get caught out by this constantly.

Outages pile up on storm days, obviously. When the sky turns that odd grey, our UAE weather page has live conditions for all seven emirates.

National Helplines Worth Saving

Nobody plans on needing any of these. Save them anyway.

• 116111 is the child protection hotline, run by the Ministry of Interior.
• The national mental health support line from the Ministry of Health and Prevention is 800 4673. Confidential, and somebody answers at any hour.
• 800 7283 is EWAA, the shelter for women and children. Human trafficking reports also go through it.
• The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation is on 600 590000. A workplace injury or death has to be reported by the employer within 24 hours, and this is where.
• 800 3050 takes animal abuse reports, via the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment.

FAQ

Does 911 or 112 work in the UAE?
Not officially. The number here is 999. Some phones will quietly reroute a foreign emergency number on their own, but you don’t gamble on “some phones” while somebody’s bleeding. Dialled 911 out of habit? Hang up, call 999.

Are emergency calls free in the UAE?
Yes. All of them. 999, 998, 997, 996 and 995 cost nothing from any mobile or landline, with credit or without, tourist or resident.

What’s the difference between 999 and 901?
999 is for a genuine emergency and nothing else. 901 takes the non-urgent side in Dubai and Sharjah, the complaints and small reports and questions. Getting them backwards won’t land you in trouble, but it ties up a line somebody else might need to stay alive.

Which number do I call for an ambulance in Dubai?
998, exactly like everywhere else in the country. Dubai does add the DCAS SOS app, which pushes your precise location straight to dispatch and works for people with hearing or visual impairments. Sensible thing to have installed if Dubai’s home.

Do I pay for emergency treatment as a visitor?
Stabilising you is free at a government hospital when your life’s on the line. After that point the bills start, and they go to you or your insurer. Read your travel policy on the plane, not in the waiting room.

Disclaimer: The emergency numbers and contact details on this page were verified against official UAE government and public authority sources at the time of publication. Services, helplines, and utility contact numbers may change over time. In a life threatening emergency, always dial 999 (Police), 998 (Ambulance), or 997 (Civil Defence) immediately, and refer to the relevant UAE government authority for the latest official information.