London Ambulance Service (LAS) has put in place an operational plan for the World Cup period that involves a mobile first aid post in Croydon - 'Operation Whitgift' - and 'rapid deployment cells' across London. A separate initiative is taking place in central London where an outpatient transport ambulance, staffed by a paramedic and two other ambulance-service personnel, is sent only to those patients who are drunk. All the initiatives are intended to free emergency ambulances to respond to patients who are seriously ill or injured.
LAS dealt with nearly 24,500 alcohol related calls in 2005, at a cost of around £3.8 million. Experience from the Euro 2004 football tournament and the Ashes last year suggests that alcohol related calls during the World Cup period will place an exceptionally heavy demand on the service.
The service is urging Londoners to call 999 only in cases of medical emergency this summer. The rise in demand for ambulances can mean that people with life-threatening conditions in real need of emergency medical treatment – for example, those suffering a heart attack – might not receive the immediate response they require, putting lives at risk.
Operation Whitgift
Approximately 35,000 people visit Croydon town centre between the hours of 18.00 and 04.00 in a normal weekend. There are a high number of restaurants, bars and nightclubs in a very small geographical area, the main activity being centered in and around the pedestrianised area of the High Street and George Street. The call rate in Croydon Town Centre at weekends is notoriously high in a very small footprint, and the majority of calls are alcohol related or minor injuries. A significant increase is expected during the World Cup and particularly at the times when England fixtures are taking place.
There will be a mobile first aid post in the town centre for the England games and other key matches, with
- 5 First aiders
- 1 Nurse
- 1 Ambulance (PTS) and 1 Response Vehicle (M229)
Rapid Deployment Cells
These cells will be deployed as required to areas of London experiencing extreme volumes of calls paying particular attention to the following factors that were the most common alcohol related workload in Euro 2004:
- Assault/Rape
- Unconscious/passing out
- Potential civil disorder/large fight in progress
Resources will be deployed to any declared catastrophic or major incidents, incidents known to have confirmed multiple casualties or incidents involving suspect packages that have been assessed by the Police or Security Services as posing a threat of an actual improvised explosive device.
Each cell will consist of:
- 1 Duty Station Officer
- 2 LAS A&E Ambulances
- 1 LAS PTS blue light vehicle with crew plus a Paramedic or EMT
Further information:
Craig Macpherson at the London Ambulance Service Communications Department on 020 7921 5113.
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