THE NUMBERS of people presenting to emergency units with fractures was up to 50 per cent above normal figures for the time of year, the Health Service Executive said yesterday.
Speaking at a briefing of the Emergency Planning Taskforce yesterday Gavin Maguire, head of emergency management at the HSE, said additional beds had been opened to cope with the numbers of people undergoing orthopaedic surgery and additional theatre time had been allocated for operations.
Widespread snow was replaced with freezing fog and ice in many parts of the country at the weekend. The conditions led to dangerous black ice on roads and footpaths, which is likely to continue until at least midweek, Met Éireann warned.
Mr Maguire said people were presenting at hospitals with complex fractures due to the speed of fall and force of impact associated with slipping on ice.
“These fractures are not just breaks, in many cases they can be life-changing injuries,” he said.
People were requiring surgery on their fractures instead of just needing plaster.
Hospitals on the eastern side of the country have had to open additional theatre time for orthopaedic surgery, though they were not yet as busy as the peak of last year.
Mr Maguire said the HSE was concerned that numbers could increase because people were returning to work and school and the snow was compacted on paths making them more dangerous.
He urged pedestrians to wear footwear with good grip and to take their hands out of their pockets so they could save themselves if they fall.
Chairman of the taskforce Seán Hogan said road conditions around the country remained very difficult.
“In some ways it may be even more dangerous and patches of black ice are a very particular and dangerous problem,” he said.
He said they were particularly concerned about reports that some people were driving “way too fast” for the road conditions. Secondary roads and footpaths remained very dangerous and the severe night frosts would continue this week.
“Our messages for pedestrians and drivers are again to move about with great care,” he said.
Mr Hogan also thanked “thousands of people” who had tackled the frozen snow and ice outside their own premises and those of their neighbours.
Residents in Rathdrum, Co Wicklow, were among communities around the country yesterday who were grateful for the presence of soldiers on their streets.
The snow-covered hillside village was dug out by 20 Army personnel. Some 250 soldiers were deployed to various parts of the country in the last few days, including Naas, Newbridge, Leixlip, Dunshaughlin and Dundalk, to help local authorities to clear snow and ice.
They also assisted HSE staff getting to and from work, brought palliative care nurses to patients and patients to hospitals. And some meals on wheels were delivered in 4X4 vehicles.
Public transport continued to improve over the weekend. Airports were open and Iarnród Éireann services also operated except for the M3 Parkway to Clonsilla line.
Bus Éireann said yesterday it had “very few cancellations” at the weekend and it was doing all it could to keep routes operating.
Dublin Bus said it had operated a full service with some curtailments yesterday, particularly in housing estates and it was forced to finish at 9pm last night due to fog and ice.
The Luas lines and Dart services operated as normal yesterday, though the Luas Connolly stop remained closed.
The Department of Education said it expected schools, some of which have been closed for a week, to begin returning to normal today and in the next few days.
