Emergency Medical Services (EMS) attended to more than 6 000 incidents in the province over the recent long weekend.
A total of 31% of these complaints were related to life-threatening conditions, according to a statement issued to the media by the Western Cape Department of Health and Wellness.
The incidents included more than 1000 weapon assaults, 900 cases of chest pain, more than 500 respiratory complaints, and more than 480 physical assaults.
In an “unusually busy long weekend on the roads”, the paramedics responded to a total of 187 road traffic-related incidents.
The Cape Metro region, with 92 cases, had the highest number of such incidents, 47 of which involved pedestrians.
The department appealed to motorists to travel more slowly when approaching pedestrians, and for pedestrians to wear visible clothes when they walk next to a road, particularly when it’s dark.
“The fewer incidents on our roads, the more quickly our response agencies can attend to other emergencies,” the statement read.
Of the trauma cases referred to hospitals and community health centres (CHC), 220 were attended to at Delft CHC, 195 at Kraaifontein CHC, 194 at Khayelitsha Hospital, 184 at Tygerberg Hospital, 168 at Mitchells Plain Hospital, 167 at Gugulethu CHC and 167 at Paarl Hospital.
“Our colleagues in the mobility department have done several road-safety awareness campaigns for the festive season and will also have significant law enforcement officers on important routes to ensure that road-users obey the rules of the road,” the department said.
