|
The Red
Cross officials attended
1,223 emergencies from
Monday to Sunday, during
Holy Week. / Red Cross
courtesy photo
|
Red Cross confirmed 45 deaths
during Easter
|
By the
A.M. Costa Rica staff
The final report of the Red
Cross on emergencies during Holy
Week has confirmed a total of 45
people died in accidents that
included vehicle accidents, gun,
and knife attacks and drowning.
The Red Cross officials attended
1,223 emergencies from Monday to
Sunday, during Holy Week, as
follows:
- 263 car crashes.
- 208 people at risk of
drowning.
- 194 car rollovers.
- 151 emergencies due to falling
from high places.
- 149 people with broken bones.
- 91 people attended in the
hospital emergency rooms.
- 56 people attacked with
weapons.
- 47 people intoxicated or
poisoned.
- 32 people struck by vehicles.
- 30 people electrocuted.
- 2 people lost in the
mountains.
As A.M. Costa Rica reported on
April 22, thousands of people
used the Holy Week to go on
vacation to the mountains, which
caused an increase in accidents.
Red Cross officials call on
people to increase precautionary
measures to prevent accidents
and deaths during trips to
beaches or mountains.
Among the main recommendations
by Red Cross specialists are:
-Watch for warning flags
indicating strong currents.
-Check the weather, avoid the
beach if there is lightning in
the forecast and wait at least
30 minutes after the last
thunder boom before heading back
out to the sand.
-Know how to swim or if you're
at the beach with a child or
adult who cannot swim, make sure
everyone has a well-fitting
lifejacket handy. If you're
going boating, every passenger
should wear a properly-sized
lifejacket at all times.
-Watch for rip currents. If you
get pulled out, stay calm, save
your energy (let the current
carry you for a while), and keep
breathing. Do not try to swim
against the current. Start
horizontal swimming to the shore
until you're out of the current.
Then turn and swim diagonally
towards the shore. If you cannot
make it to the shore, wave your
arms and make noise so someone
can see or hear you and get
help.
-Pick a swimming spot close to a
lifeguard. Lifeguards are there
for a reason - they know and can
see things about the beach that
most beachgoers do not.
-Stay sober. Alcohol does not
only affect judgment; it can
also dehydrate you, increasing
the likelihood of heat-related
sicknesses.
-Do not swim for 24 hours after
using marijuana. Never swim
after using any
judgment-impairing drug.
-Save your skin. Keep the red at
bay by slathering on a
broad-spectrum sunscreen of SPF
15 or higher, and make sure you
have a source of shade - think
hats, umbrellas, tents - readily
available (especially during the
peak hours from 10 am to 4 pm ).
Eyes can get sunburned, too, so
do not forget some shades.
-Watch for sun sickness/stroke.
A few hours of baking under the
sun can cause some serious
symptoms and may lead to severe
sickness. Heat exhaustion, heat
stroke, and sun poisoning can
result from dehydration and
extended exposure to high
temperatures, so make sure to
drink plenty of water
The Red Cross developed a
special plan for attending
accidents during Holy Week. This
operation included more than a
thousand officers, 145 vehicles,
14 boats, 65 mobile stands on
roads and 65 first aid posts on
the beaches, and the 9-1-1
emergency line attended calls
24/7.
--------------
Have you been part of an
emergency during Holy Week?
We
would like to know your thoughts
on this story. Send your
comments to: news@amcostarica.com
*Link to reach the place map.
|
|
|
AMCostaRica©
AMCostaRica©
Want to write
or gripe
about Costa
Rica?
Want to
submit an event
to our
calendar?
Send all the
information news@amcostarica.com
Profile
pictures are welcome too !
-No defamatory
pieces will be accepted.
-We
reserve the right to publish.
AMCostaRica©
|
|
