999 call handler is sacked 'after getting the giggles' with man who phoned to report a member of his own family for drink-driving Sue Heeney 'got the giggles' when caller got the phonetic alphabet wrong He told her that suspected drink-driver might have been in a hit-and-run Wrongly graded call as 'suspicious circumstances' rather than 'non-stop road traffic collision' She took no steps to start an immediate investigation into the claims Driver in question was involved in two hit-and-runs that evening Mother-of-two, 38, could have put lives at risk, discipline hearing told A 999 operator who 'laughed and sniggered' throughout a call from a man reporting that a suspected drink-driver may have been involved in a hit-and-run has been sacked for gross misconduct. Sue Heeney failed to 'grasp the seriousness of the situation' after joking with the caller when he made a mistake while giving her the registration of the car. A disciplinary hearing was told that she 'got the giggles' and from then on 'failed to deal with the conversation in a sober and professional manner'. She then graded the call with the incorrect heading 'suspicious circumstances' rather than 'non-stop road traffic collision'. Miss Heeney, 38, who worked for Essex Police, had been told by the caller that a member of his own family may have been drink-driving. But she did not take immediate steps to start an investigation or gather evidence that could have helped with the search for the suspect or victims. It was only when a dispatcher realised the seriousness of the incident that more immediate action was taken. The adjudicator said: 'It is extremely fortunate that the dispatcher who picked up this incident, reviewed and reassessed its nature and urgency and took effective action.' The driver in question was found to have been involved in two collisions that evening and failed to stop at both of them. One of the victims was a cyclist who was lucky to escape serious injury, it was heard. Dismissing her for gross misconduct, the adjudicator ruled her actions 'could have potentially put lives at risk and adversely affected public confidence'. The call, which was made on November 9 last year, became light-hearted when the caller, Paul Turner, struggled to recall the phonetic alphabet and suggested 'E as in Edward - I don't know the proper one'. A recording of the conversation reveals the caller laughs first, saying: 'I don't know the proper one'. A letter from a detective inspector investigating the matter for Essex Police to Miss Heeney said: 'During the call, when receiving details from the caller, you started to laugh excessively at a mistake the caller had made and you continued to laugh and snigger throughout the call.' Miss Heeney, of Marks Tey, near Colchester, Essex, says she chuckled with the caller to 'help him relax'. She admitted mis-grading the call, but claimed the call was made more than three hours after the alleged incidents. Speaking after the hearing, she said: 'I was told I was being too jolly, laughing and happy on the phone. When receiving details from the caller, you started to laugh excessively at a mistake the caller had made and you continued to laugh and snigger throughout the call Investigating officer 'I've spoken to the caller since and he can't believe what has happened. There have been calls where I have literally saved someone's life.' He made the call, which involved a family member, after much deliberation over the impact it might have on his family relationship.