The NHS Foundation Trust South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAmb) has high levels of demand today, affecting its ability to respond quickly to 999 emergencies.

The trust is asking the public to think carefully about whether they really need to call for an ambulance, during what is likely to be the busiest weekend of the year.

So far in the festive period, demand on the trust has increased by 10 per cent compared to last year.

From 7pm on Christmas Eve until 11pm on Boxing Day, teams responded to 4,840 emergency calls.

Between last New Year’s Eve at 10pm and 4am on the January 1, the trust handled 1,135 calls.

This equates to an average of more than three 999 calls a minute. This year, it is expected to be even higher.

The trust’s on call Gold Incident Commander, Richard Webber said: “We are already receiving a high volume of emergency 999 calls, especially across Kent and are struggling to reach many of these in a timely manner.

“Our staff are already working extremely hard but this does mean that for certain emergencies, some patients can expect to wait longer for an ambulance as we focus our efforts on responding to calls which are deemed life-threatening.

“The public can help us by avoid calling us for non-life-threatening emergencies and seek alternative treatment from other healthcare providers or if you do require hospital treatment look to make your own way there.”

SECAmb officials want to remind people to only dial 999 in the event of a serious emergency.

Other options are available, such as calling NHS 111, which is run in partnership across Kent, Surrey and Sussex with Care UK.

When to call 999:

If you think someone is suffering from one of the following you must dial 999 for an ambulance:

· heart attack (e.g. chest pain for more than 15 minutes)

· sudden unexplained shortness of breath

· heavy bleeding

· unconsciousness (even if the patient has regained consciousness)

· traumatic back/spinal/neck pain

An ambulance should also be called if:

· you think the person's illness or injury is life-threatening

· you think the illness or injury may become worse, or even life-threatening on the way to the hospital

· moving the patient or patients without skilled people could cause further injury

· they need skills or equipment of the ambulance service and its personnel