THE big freeze has sparked a dramatic increase in people falling ill at home, it was revealed today.

Ambulance staff have been faced with a massive rise in call-outs to take patients, mainly elderly people, to hospital during the past 48 hours.

And medics also revealed that the big chill has left dozens of East Lancashire people with broken bones.

Bernard Glenholme, director of accident and emergency for Lancashire Ambulance NHS Trust, said there had been a "considerable" increase in people being taken ill at home.

He said: "There have been a few cases of pneumonia, but it is mainly general illnesses, particularly affecting the elderly."

Casualty staff at Blackburn Infirmary have been hard-pressed to handle a large increase in attendances during the past 48 hours.

Yvonne Jump, nurse manager for orthopaedics, said staff had been dealing with a flurry of fractures and broken bones.

She said: "Christmas is always a busy time. But this year we have had many people coming in with fractures after falling on the slippery pavements."

She added there had been a notable rise in the number of teenagers being treated after they over-indulged on alcohol.

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