
Yorkshire Ambulance Service (YAS) is appealing for the public to stay safe as they predict a surge in calls on what they call ‘Mad Friday’.
Traditionally, YAS sees a significant increase in the number of 999 calls on the last Friday before Christmas but with Christmas Day falling on a Monday this year there is the added potential for two Fridays (15 and 22 December) to both be busier than normal.
Around 2,800 of the 999 calls received by Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust (YAS) last December were alcohol-related, according to figures just released.
December 2016 also saw a 16 per cent increase in the number of calls where the chief complaint was assault or unconscious/passing out – 4,405 calls compared to 3,810 calls in November 2017, although these were not all necessarily alcohol-related.
The news comes as ambulance bosses issue an appeal to revellers to think about the impact of alcohol-related calls on other ill and injured patients across the county.