VIOLENCE and accidents surged after the final whistle of England’s World Cup defeat, say ambulance chiefs.
Assaults, domestic violence, car crashes and cases of ‘drink-fuelled bravado’ across the West Midlands saw emergency phone lines light up ‘almost immediately’ after the match last night (Wednesday July 11), with calls up by 15 per cent compared to the same time the previous week.
Over 1,100 calls were received by West Midlands Ambulance Service between 9.30pm and 4.30am.
Ambulance officer Nathan Hudson said: “We were called to over 40 reports of assaults in the aftermath of the match. Sadly, we also saw a number of cases of domestic violence.
“We also dealt with a number of serious RTCs and other drink related incidents with people falling over, drink fueled cases of bravado leading to injuries.”
In Birmingham, paramedics were called to a brawl in Great Barr where a man in his 40s was taken to hospital with facial injuries and numerous cuts.
A man in his 40s was rushed to hospital with head and arm injuries after ‘surfing’ on top of a moving car in Barn lane, Olton, Solihull.
The crew was also called to the canal in Broad Street, Birmingham, after 16 people jumped in the water. All were discharged after being assessed.
The officer said the high levels of demand continued until around 4.30am before returning to normal.
He thanked crews including those who worked on their day off, and added the trust coped with the significant rise in demand ‘exceptionally well’.
