29 April 2011
As hundreds of thousands of well wishers celebrated
the Royal Wedding along the procession route and across the
capital, London Ambulance Service staff ensured that everyone got
the medical care they needed.
The Service is now urging people continuing
their celebrations to use the 999 number wisely.
Ambulance Operations Manager Athar Khan said:
“The day has been particularly busy and presented us with a unique
challenge but the Royal Wedding is an event which we have spent
several months preparing for. Up until 2pm today we had
treated 255 patients in the event area and taken 11 to
hospital.
“We now urge everyone in London continuing
their celebrations this afternoon and into the evening to help us
get the care to patients who need it most by using our 999 service
wisely. If your injury or illness is not an emergency please
consider other options such as calling NHS Direct or your
out-of-hours GP service.
Around 200 extra staff were on duty in central
London today to provide medical cover for the event, and to ensure
that the rest of London received the emergency care they needed
during the day.
The Service worked with 700 St John Ambulance
volunteers, operating 22 treatment centres, and 100 British Red
Cross volunteers to attend the people who flocked to support the
newlyweds.
Athar Khan said: “We have worked in
partnership with St John Ambulance, the British Red Cross and other
London agencies to ensure we can provide good emergency medical
cover for this event.
“We brought in almost 200 extra staff to work
today to ensure we provide good cover for both the event and our
normal weekend workload.
“The London Ambulance Service would like to
congratulate the royal couple and wish them a long and happy
marriage."
- Ends -
Notes to editors:
- For further information about the London Ambulance Service or
this news release please contact the Communications Department on
020 7783 2286.
- Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ldn_ambulance