Police department asks people not to call 911 if they run out of toilet paper

A police department in Newport, Oregon, is urging residents not to call 911 because they've run out of toilet paper.

Naturally, with everything happening in the world right now, tensions and anxieties are running higher than they perhaps usually would, as communities all over the world come to terms with the prospect of long periods of isolation and bare supermarket shelves in some instances.

As such, police in the United States will be braced for continued 911 emergency calls amid the coronavirus outbreak, but Newport Police Department is here to remind everyone of what the emergency number is for.

Taking to Facebook in a rather brilliant post that has since gone viral, the department wrote;

"It’s hard to believe that we even have to post this. Do not call 9-1-1 just because you ran out of toilet paper. You will survive without our assistance.

"In fact, history offers many other options for you in your time of need if you cannot find a roll of your favorite soft, ultra plush two-ply citrus scented tissue.

"Seamen used old rope and anchor lines soaked in salt water. Ancient Romans used a sea sponge on a stick, also soaked in salt water. We are a coastal town. We have an abundance of salt water available. Sea shells were also used.

"Mayans used corn cobs. Colonial Americans also used the core of the cob. Farmers not only used corn cobs, but used pages from the Farmers Almanac. Many Americans took advantage of the numerous pages torn from free catalogs such as Sears and Roebuck. The Sears Christmas catalog, four times thicker than the normal catalog, could get a family of three wiped clean from December through Valentine’s Day; or Saint Patrick’s Day if they were frugal.

"Then, of course, there are always alternatives to toilet paper. Grocery receipts, newspaper, cloth rags, lace, cotton balls, and that empty toilet paper roll sitting on the holder right now. Plus, there are a variety of leaves you can safely use. Mother Earth News magazine will even tell you how to make your own wipes using fifteen different leaves. When all else fails, you have magazine pages. Start saving those catalogs you get in the mail that you usually toss into the recycle bin. Be resourceful. Be patient. There is a TP shortage. This too shall pass. Just don’t call 9-1-1. We cannot bring you toilet paper."

Per CNN, toilet paper is unavailable at many stores and supermarkets across the United States as people stockpile household essentials amid the coronavirus outbreak.

The World Health Organization has now declared that the COVID-19 is a pandemic, writing in a statement: "WHO has been assessing this outbreak around the clock and we are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction. We have therefore made the assessment that COVID-19 can be characterized as a pandemic."

The statement continued: "Pandemic is not a word to use lightly or carelessly. It is a word that, if misused, can cause unreasonable fear, or unjustified acceptance that the fight is over, leading to unnecessary suffering and death."