The East Netherlands ambulance dispatch centre in Apeldoorn has faced staffing shortages for months, with gaps in its roster linked mainly to cuts in Gelderland-Midden and Gelderland-Zuid. On the night of 30 September to 1 October, the North Netherlands dispatch centre took all 112 calls, and this happened again a few days later. The cooperating ambulance regions said the East Netherlands centre was not completely offline, because staff there continued to communicate with ambulances and take calls from professional services.