Emergency help at hand for festive party revellers (From Daily Echo)
When news happens, text SDE and your photos or videos to 80360. Or contact us by email and phone.
Emergency help at hand for festive party revellers
6:50am Monday 22nd December 2008 in
DRUNKEN revellers left stranded or injured after a night out in Southampton this Christmas are being offered a safe haven.
A fully staffed ambulance and portable building will be stationed in the city centre’s Guildhall Square to provide medical help and advice and even arrange a taxi ride home.
Council, police and ambulance chiefs hope it will relieve the pressure on emergency services and help make sure party-goers get home safely.
The SOS project helped 34 people last weekend, mostly because they were cold, had too much to drink and were unsure of how to get home.
Eight would otherwise have needed to go to hospital.
Councillor Royston Smith, Cabinet member for economic development, said: “The SOS initiative is a serious attempt to take pressure off the emergency services this Christmas and to help anyone who needs help or advice over this festive season to get them home safely.
Chief Inspector Alison Scott, from Southampton central police station, said: “Getting people safely home after a night out is a key priority for the police. Having additional resources out on the streets to help Christmas revellers can only be of benefit and reduce the fear of crime.”
Rob Kemp, head of operations for South Central Ambulance Service, added: “It is vital at any time of the year that people get the right treatment for their clinical need but more so during the winter when pressure on the emergency services is at its highest. We look forward to taking part in this new initiative to provide a safe haven for the members of the public in Southampton.”
The SOS project will run until the new year.
Comments(17)
Forest Resident
says...
7:44am Mon 22 Dec 08
hulla baloo
says...
8:09am Mon 22 Dec 08
Hospitals are short staffed, with sometimes long waits at A and E, yet these precious resources are being diverted to the self inflicted.
Yet another example of the genuine needy having to wait.
The pubs and clubs encourage 'guests' to spend as much as they can, knowing that once they are outside the front doors, they are no longer responsible for the mess and havoc created.
It should be made a conditio of their licensing that each pub, club has to fund a police officer to maintain law and order.
Will increase police staffing levels in town, without losing the presence in other areas.
Football clubs have to fund the polce presence, or they cannot operate, pubs and clubs should be the same.
Georgem
says...
8:35am Mon 22 Dec 08
Tobeblunt
says...
9:28am Mon 22 Dec 08
This allows more non-alcohol related admissions to get treatment in a respectable time scale at A+E.
Georgem
says...
10:30am Mon 22 Dec 08
I stongly believe that the tab for this should be collected from the local pubs and clubs
Yeh, that's a thought. Could become a more permanent fixture, too
Lone Ranger
says...
10:31am Mon 22 Dec 08
9:28am Mon 22 Dec 08
This is a great idea. Although I stongly believe that the tab for this should be collected from the local pubs and clubs.
WHY ?? No one forces them to drink themselves into oblivion or injure themselves.
.... The ones who should pay are the ones that use it
Georgem
says...
10:56am Mon 22 Dec 08
Lone Ranger wrote:The service stretches beyond those who drink themselves into oblivion or injure themselves. By extension, you're saying that the emergency services should only be availed to those who are absolutely not in any way responsible for the emergency they find themselves in. Which would discount most people, to be honest.
Tobeblunt, Southampton says...
9:28am Mon 22 Dec 08
This is a great idea. Although I stongly believe that the tab for this should be collected from the local pubs and clubs.
WHY ?? No one forces them to drink themselves into oblivion or injure themselves.
.... The ones who should pay are the ones that use it
If you find someone unconscious in a gutter, how do you, at that point, assess whether it's their own fault or not? Do you just leave them there to die, because some loser thinks he's the only taxpayer in the friggin' country, and cannot accommodate the very thought of being helpful to another human being? What a clown
Lone Ranger
says...
11:20am Mon 22 Dec 08
Georgem wrote:Actually i am not a clown......once again just because someone does not share your views you decide to start throwing a few insults around dont you like a spoilt school kid.
Lone Ranger wrote: Tobeblunt, Southampton says... 9:28am Mon 22 Dec 08 This is a great idea. Although I stongly believe that the tab for this should be collected from the local pubs and clubs. WHY ?? No one forces them to drink themselves into oblivion or injure themselves. .... The ones who should pay are the ones that use itThe service stretches beyond those who drink themselves into oblivion or injure themselves. By extension, you're saying that the emergency services should only be availed to those who are absolutely not in any way responsible for the emergency they find themselves in. Which would discount most people, to be honest. If you find someone unconscious in a gutter, how do you, at that point, assess whether it's their own fault or not? Do you just leave them there to die, because some loser thinks he's the only taxpayer in the friggin' country, and cannot accommodate the very thought of being helpful to another human being? What a clown
People who actually go out and get out of their head on alchohol or whatever should not expect the rest of society to continually foot the bill for irresponsible behaviour.
No one disputes the people that are genuinely as that is probably self inflicted
Georgem
says...
11:58am Mon 22 Dec 08
Also, in your haste to dole out a pointless verbal spanking, you forgot to make your last sentence make any sense.
Lone Ranger
says...
12:02pm Mon 22 Dec 08
Georgem wrote:Since when has a balloon head like you put threads on here that made much sense anyway let alone criticise others for theirs. I expect you will be sad enough to pick me up on my spelling soon
Actually I think you are a clown. An armchair libertarian, too. Just because you don't share that opinion, there's no need to blah blah blah whatever you said earlier. Spare us your misplaced "I'm perfect, me" self-righteousness. Also, in your haste to dole out a pointless verbal spanking, you forgot to make your last sentence make any sense.
Forest Resident
says...
12:29pm Mon 22 Dec 08
soton-mike80
says...
1:02pm Mon 22 Dec 08
I think the point of the service is to ensure that people who do need help can get it - regardless of whether their need is self-inflicted.
Anyway - majority of the people who are drunk ARE tax payers too! How the hell can they drink otherwise?
The 'holier than thou' attitude of some people is unbelievable! What a boring place this world would be if certain people had their way!
There we go - a few flood-gates opened for people to **** at me now!!
Take it easy all - have a good and safe Christmas!
Soton08
says...
1:44pm Mon 22 Dec 08
10 Minute Man
says...
5:41pm Mon 22 Dec 08
I can see the attractiveness of the kneejerk taxpayers' money argument but this is a wiser approach because it will be cheaper than the Police/A&E involvement which would ensue if the drunk monkies were left to it.
Georgem
says...
9:19pm Mon 22 Dec 08
Forest Resident wrote:Forest Resident, could you please show me the part of this story that says the regular emergency services will be suffering as a result of this service? You do realise, I hope, that this is something of a preventative, pre-emptive measure, and that some of those helped by this service could easily have been a much more serious problem to deal with later in the evening?
George, i'm sure if you or your family/friends are a victim of crime or suffer a serious injury/illness requiring medical attention then i'm sure you would expect a quick response from the respective emergency service. It's painfully obvious (do the research!) that the current drink culture already stretches paramedics and police beyond breaking point in terms of demand far outstripping available resources, and for this reasons should you need them you are unfortunately likely to face a long wait during peak times (especially pub closing time). For more money to be thrown at those invovled in this selfish drink culture and essential emergency resources diverted from our neighbourhoods to facilitate it is fundamentally wrong.
Case dismissed. Go make the lone ranger less lonely by joining him on his friggin' pedestal
Georgem
says...
9:22pm Mon 22 Dec 08
Lone Ranger
says...
9:44am Tue 23 Dec 08
Georgem wrote:Yeah thats right georgem usual cr@p from you. In your own words blah, blah, blah. I did notice you compliment yourself on your own worthwhile comments. Typical of you so self opinionated and lacking in real moral fibre. Have a good Christmas. LOL
Straw man averted, lone ranger. I couldn't give a stuff about your illiteracy. Your inability to think beyond the end of your nose troubles me somewhat, but that's another story. If you could be arsed to read properly, you'd see I make a lot of worthwhile comments, rather than just reach for the ready-made judgmental bullshit in the most predictable, tiresome way possible. How about trying to not simply poo-poo every single idea thrown about for once?
More News stories
- Film will target young drinkers
- Yellow cards cut booze troubles
- Child booze problem in city
- Penny a pint plan has been scrapped
- ‘Shocking’ statistics on underage drinking
- Two pubs and off-licence fined
- Drink-drivers face text trap
- How do we tackle our drink problem?
- Eastleigh to tackle under-age drinkers
- Clampdown on alcohol
Emergency help at hand for festive party revellers
Most popular
Local Information
Enter your postcode, town or place name
Comment now! Register or sign in below.
Log in with us
Fields marked with * are mandatory.
Or
Log in with