EMS responds to 5 210 incidents during the weekend

The Western Cape Government Health's (WCGH’) Emergency Medical Services (EMS) responded to 5 210 incidents in the Western Cape over the weekend. There were 112 incidents in red zone areas and 169 transport-related incidents. Officials responded to six search and rescue incidents which took place at the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve, Lions Head, Constantia, Signal Hill and Table Mountain. One of the incidents involved a 30-year-old male hiker who fell from Lions Head near the Camps Bay area. A search was conducted by the EMS Rescue team and Skymed extracted the patient from the scene. Unfortunately, the patient sustained fatal injuries. We would like to extend our sincere condolences to the family and friends of the deceased.

Furthermore, the top ten incidents types for the weekend included weapon assault (990); non cardiac pain (685); obstetric complaints (410); respiratory complaints (385); physical assault (242); vomiting/diarrhoea (232); abdominal complaints (223); musculoskeletal complaints (216); forensic pathology (173); and neurological complaints (167).

The red zone area incidents occurred in Beacon Valley, Mitchells Plain (42); Tafelsig, Mitchells Plain (37); Hanover Park (24) and Chicago, Paarl (9). Ambulance crews are not allowed to enter these zones without a South African Police Service (SAPS) escort.

Most patients were transported to the Tygerberg, Worcester and Groote Schuur Hospitals. 

The incident breakdown per district is as follows:

City of Cape Town (2 309);

Cape Winelands District Municipality (921);

Eden District Municipality (890);

West Coast District Municipality (529);

Overberg District Municipality (405) and

Central Karoo District Municipality (156).

“We salute the brave EMS staff members who continually to do their work and serve the community, despite the challenges they must endure at times. We also thank our partners who have each contributed across various sectors to ensure a wide support network,” says Dr. Shaheem de Vries, Director, WCGH’s EMS.