Get help now
Sibona is not an emergency service. The lines below are free, open 24 hours a day, and staffed by people trained for this call.
If someone’s life is in danger right now — call 112 from any cellphone, even with no airtime, or 10111 for the police and 10177 for an ambulance.
South African lines
- SADAG Suicide Crisis Line 0800 567 567 24 hours · Free from any South African phone. For suicidal thoughts and emotional crisis.
- SADAG Mental Health Line 0800 12 13 14 24 hours · Free national line for emotional support and referrals to local help.
- LifeLine South Africa 0861 322 322 24 hours · National line for anyone who needs to talk to a person right now.
- GBV Command Centre 0800 428 428 24 hours · Gender-based violence support. Also *120*7867# from a cellphone.
- Childline South Africa 116 24 hours · Free line for children and teens, and for adults worried about a child.
- Police (SAPS) 10111 24 hours · Immediate danger or a crime in progress.
- Ambulance 10177 24 hours · Medical emergency.
- Emergency from a cellphone 112 24 hours · Works from any cellphone, even without airtime.
Numbers last checked 2026-09-14. We list these lines as information; we are not connected to any of them and we cannot promise how quickly anyone will answer.
While you wait for someone to answer
- If you can, tell one person where you are and ask them to stay with you — a friend, a neighbour, anyone.
- Move anything that could hurt you out of the room, or go to a room where there is nothing like that.
- Keep the phone with you and keep trying the numbers above — if one line is busy, try the next.
- Your nearest hospital’s emergency department will see you, at any hour, without an appointment.
Worried about someone else
You can call any of these lines about another person. Ask them directly whether they are thinking of ending their life — asking does not put the idea in anyone’s head, and it is often a relief to be asked. Stay with them, and let the people on those lines help you work out what to do next.
What Sibona can and cannot do
It can listen at 3am, and it can sit with you while you put words to what is happening. It cannot call anyone for you, send help to your address, or know where you are. Nobody at Sibona is watching your conversation while it happens.