PARAMEDICS were called to more than 100 incidents in Warrington on New Year’s Eve.

Figures released by the North West Ambulance Service showed that it was called to a total of 104 emergency incidents in the town between 12pm on New Year’s Eve and 12pm on New Year’s Day.

The busiest time in this period was between 1am and 2am on New Year’s Day, when nine incidents were reported.

Other busy periods included 11am to 12pm on New Year’s Day, when ambulances were called to eight emergencies, and 3am to 4am on January 1 - when seven incidents were reported.

NWAS said that, across the region, it was around a third busier on New Year’s Eve when compared to an average day.

A spokesman said: “New Year is traditionally an extremely busy time for the ambulance service, and this year was no exception.

“On New Year’s Day, the trust handled a massive 5,913 emergency calls - a 33 per cent increase on an average day.

“We were well prepared, with additional ambulances on the road and 30 per cent more staff than usual in its emergency operations centres who helped to manage the extra calls.

“As always, we urge people to make the right call all year round and only dial 999 for life-threatening or potentially life-threatening emergencies.”

Meanwhile, new NHS figures have also revealed that one in 10 ambulances that arrived at Warrington Hospital on Christmas Day waited more than an hour before they were able to transfer their patients into its A&E department.

Of the 70 ambulances that arrived at the Lovely Lane site on December 25, seven were delayed by an hour or more.

But Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said it had one of the most 'high performing emergency departments in the region'.

Chief operating officer Chris Evans added: “It is very disappointing to be singled out for this single day - this does not make for an accurate reflection of our overall performance across the festive period.

“We have made significant improvements in reducing ambulance handover times and work closely with our partner, the North West Ambulance Service, to ensure our patients are received in a safe and timely manner.

“While we are usually recognised as one of the strongest performers in the region for ambulance handover times, we do recognise that December was a challenging month as for many organisations as winter began to take hold.”