IT WAS one of the busiest New Year’s Eve nights on record for 999 emergencies across Cheshire and Merseyside, according to the North West Ambulance Service (NWAS).

Emergency calls for the 24-hour period totalled 1,045.

But the busiest time was between 11pm on New Year’s Eve and 5am on New Year’s Day. During this period, the number of 999 calls soared to 712.

Bob Williams, deputy chief executive at NWAS, said: “New Year’s Eve is always one of our busiest nights and this year is no exception.

“All our staff worked hard both in control rooms managing emergency calls and deploying vehicles and on frontline vehicles, tending to patients.

“It is their dedication and commitment that enables us to continue to deliver excellent service to the people of Cheshire and Merseyside – a fact I am sure the general public will recognise. I would like to thank everyone involved for their hard work and commitment.”

As well as attending a large number of emergency incidents involving accidents resulting from alcohol consumption and accidental injuries, ambulance crews also attended a number of serious incidents such as serious road accidents in Rock Ferry, Liverpool and Sealand Road, Chester.

Thee was a shooting in Liverpool at 5.30am and in the early hours a teenage girl was arrested after attempting to break into a locked ambulance that was responding to a call in South Liverpool.

NWAS received far fewer inappropriate calls, which meant ambulance crews were able to channel their efforts into cases of genuine need of emergency medical intervention.