What Rescue 1122 Actually Does in Pakistan
One number covers ambulance, fire, water rescue, road crashes and building collapse. And 1192 is the separate complaints line.
1122 is not only an ambulance number. The same service does fire, water rescue, building collapse, road crashes, hazardous material incidents and animal rescue.
People call a private ambulance for a fire, or ring nobody at all when a building falls, because they think 1122 means one thing. It does not.
We read this on the Emergency Services Department's own site at rescue.gov.pk on 31 August 2026.
What one call covers
The department describes an Integrated Emergency Services Model, established for professional management of emergencies. Its own list of functions is wider than most people expect.
| Service | What it handles |
|---|---|
| Ambulance Service | Medical emergencies |
| Rescue Service | Specialised rescue operations |
| Fire Service | Fires |
| Motorbike Rescue Service | Reaching narrow streets and traffic quickly |
| Water Rescue | Drowning and flood emergencies |
| Animal Rescue | Animal related incidents |
Its stated scope also covers road traffic crashes, fires and hazardous material incidents, and building collapse. So the answer to a gas cylinder fire, a wall collapsing, or somebody in a canal is the same number.
The number for complaints is different
This is worth knowing before you need it.
The site lists 1122 as the emergency number, and a separate line, 1192, described as the lost helpline, complaints and feedback number.
Keep them apart. Using 1122 to complain about a previous response ties up the emergency line. Using 1192 in an emergency wastes the minutes that matter. Put both in your phone now, under names you will find while panicking.
How to make the call useful
What the operator needs is location first. Everything else can follow.
- Give the exact location, with a landmark, before anything else.
- Say what has happened in one sentence.
- Say how many people are involved and whether anyone is trapped.
- Say if there is fire, gas or electricity involved.
- Stay on the line and keep your phone free afterwards.
Send somebody to the road or gate to wave the vehicle in if the address is hard to find. In dense streets that step saves more time than anything said on the phone.
Free safety training exists
The department lists Community Safety as one of its functions and runs Community Safety Trainings.
That is worth asking about for a workplace, a school, a mosque committee or a residential block. Basic training in first response, evacuation and fire extinguisher use changes what happens in the minutes before help arrives, and those are the minutes that decide outcomes.
It is worth arranging before you need it rather than after an incident. A building with three trained people behaves very differently in the first five minutes from one with none, and those minutes are usually the whole difference in a fire or a collapse.
Contact the department to ask what is available in your district. Its published email is pio@rescue.gov.pk and its headquarters is at Thokhar Niaz Baig, Lahore.
It also has a building safety role
Building Safety appears in the department's own list of functions, alongside regulations it administers.
Its legal framework includes the Punjab Emergency Service Act 2006 and the Punjab Community Safety Act 2021. If you are responsible for a commercial building, a school or a factory, those are the rules that govern what you must have in place, and the department is the body to ask rather than a private contractor selling equipment.
This is a Punjab service
The Emergency Services Department is a Government of the Punjab body. Other provinces run their own arrangements, and the 1122 number does not work identically everywhere.
If you are outside Punjab, check what your province operates before you need it. Our list of emergency helpline numbers and our verified government helplines cover the numbers we have tested.
For a road crash specifically, what you do in the first minutes and what you must not admit at the scene both matter, and our guide to what to do after a road accident sets that out.
Common questions about 1122
Is 1122 only for ambulances?
No. The same service covers fire, rescue, water rescue, animal rescue, road crashes, hazardous materials and building collapse.
What is 1192?
The site lists it as the lost helpline, complaints and feedback number, separate from the emergency line.
What should I say first when I call?
The exact location with a landmark. Everything else can follow.
Does it cost anything?
It is a government emergency service. Ask about any charge at the time rather than delaying a call over it.
Does 1122 work outside Punjab?
This department is a Punjab body. Check your own province's arrangement before you need it.
Can they train our staff?
The department lists Community Safety Trainings among its functions. Ask your district office what is offered.
Last checked and sources
Last checked 31 August 2026. We read the Emergency Services Department, Rescue 1122, website at rescue.gov.pk on that date. The list of functions covering Ambulance Service, Rescue Service, Fire Service, Motorbike Rescue Service, Water Rescue, Animal Rescue, Building Safety and Community Safety, the description of an Integrated Emergency Services Model for professional management of emergencies such as medical emergencies, road traffic crashes, fires and hazardous material incidents, building collapse and water rescue and flood emergencies, the emergency number 1122 and the separate 1192 lost helpline, complaints and feedback line, the reference to Community Safety Trainings, the legal framework of the Punjab Emergency Service Act 2006 and the Punjab Community Safety Act 2021, and the published email pio@rescue.gov.pk and headquarters address at Thokhar Niaz Baig, Lahore, are all taken from that site. This is a Government of the Punjab department and arrangements differ in other provinces. We did not test the numbers by calling them, since they are emergency lines.
About the author
Author
Fajr Riaz is a well-talented author at Pakera.pk with expertise in creative content creation/writing and storytelling. Fajr's strength lies in creating engaging articles, detailed guides, and straight narratives that connect with readers and give meaningful insights. With her accurate attention to detail and passion for writing, Fajr has established herself as a pivotal pillar at Pakera and is invaluable.
