Increase in May bank holiday calls to ambulances in Hertfordshire

The East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EEAST) received 12,761 emergency calls between May 26-29, which is ten per cent more than last year (11,591 calls).

The Trust’s busiest day was Saturday (May 27) which saw control room staff receive more than 3,300 calls regionally, 450 calls more than the same day last year.

The number of calls from Hertfordshire was 2,034, a 12 per cent increase on the 1,801 received last year.

Kevin Brown, director of service delivery at the trust, said: “We continue to experience high levels of demand and this bank holiday weekend was no exception. We responded to some very challenging incidents for our staff.

“However, in the face of this we had prepared and coped well, which is a testament to the hard work and commitment of all of our staff and volunteers across the region whom I would like to thank for their extraordinary ongoing efforts.

“We continue to remind people to only call us in a genuine emergency and to consider the use of GPs, pharmacists, walk in centres, urgent care centres and other forms of self-help.”