LONDON — Due to everyone staying indoors to watch the games, the Olympics probably prevented more everyday injuries in the street, ambulance chiefs said.
“We went to more seriously-ill and injured people than this time last year,” London Operations deputy director Jason Killens told the Killburn Times.
“But we were not as busy as expected. This probably because people have less chance of being injured if they’re glued to their TV captivated by Team GB bringing home the medals.”
The fleet of 60 Olympic ambulances attended 850 patients at sports venues, the torch relay and live sites, figures from the Ambulance Service show. More than 500 people were taken to the hospital or the polyclinic at the Olympic Park.
These services were in addition to daily emergency coverage for the rest of London.
Ambulances answered 46,226 calls across London between July 28 and August 12, around 1,500 more than the same period last year. But not counting the Olympic runs, things were far less busy on average.