Emergencies in Tashkent

Good to Know

• Uzbekistan rolled out a unified 112 emergency number nationwide, but the older direct lines — 101 (fire), 102 (police), 103 (ambulance), 104 (gas) — still work and are what most locals and long-time expats use out of habit.
• Emergency operators in Tashkent primarily speak Uzbek and Russian; English support is not guaranteed, so it helps to have a local contact, hotel staff, or bystander assist with the call if you don't speak either language.
• If a short emergency number doesn't connect on your phone/SIM, ask a hotel staffer, guide, or nearby police officer to place the call from theirs.
• No dedicated official mobile 'safety app' for Uzbekistan was found during this research — rely on the phone numbers above, and if you're a US citizen, enrolling in the State Department's STEP program is a reasonable practical step for receiving security alerts while in-country.
• Uzbekistan sits in a zone of higher seismic activity, so it's worth knowing basic earthquake safety steps in addition to the phone numbers.
• For life-threatening emergencies, dial 03 (or 1050 from a mobile) for a state ambulance — this is free of charge, but dispatchers and paramedics generally speak Russian/Uzbek, not English.
• Serious trauma cases (major accidents, fractures, etc.) are usually taken to the Republican Research Center of Emergency Medicine (the old 'Hospital No. 16') — it is the country's main emergency/trauma referral hospital, not a boutique or English-first facility.
• Private clinics like Tashkent International Clinic are a good first stop for foreigners needing stabilization, English-speaking staff, and direct insurance billing, but they may still transfer critical trauma cases to a public hospital.
• Get international health insurance that explicitly covers medical evacuation — private facilities can be costly, and for complex surgical or critical care many expats still travel abroad.