Tuesday, September 13, 2016

Lost Weekends

AFD at UMass horse barn fire September 4th


While substance abuse calls to the campuses take up about 10% of AFD total emergency runs spread out over an entire year the percentage goes WAY up on weekends, which is peak period for binge drinking.

For instance in this weekend report Amherst College is at 100%, Hampshire College 60% and UMass 56%. 

And each drunk run ties up an ambulance for at least an hour meaning they are not available for any other serious emergency.

Time for our colleges and FLAGSHIP University to double down on this problem.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

These institutions should contract with private ambulance services to have additional ambulances on their campuses every weekend.

Larry Kelley said...

UMass does pay the town $80K per year to staff 2 extra ambulances on weekends bringing the potential to five but even then there are times when all five are engaged and we need to call in mutual aid.

Anonymous said...

Good luck trying to stop college students from doing something that has gone on for decades and decades,don't you remember old man?

Larry Kelley said...

All too well.

And I also remember the deaths from drunk driving being a lot higher many decades ago until people started taking it seriously.

Anonymous said...

If only the Universities were allowed to staff their own ambulances to cover the campuses. Would appreciate an investigation into that red tape, Larry.

Anonymous said...

Only after you got on the wagon, I'll bet.

Larry Kelley said...

No actually not.

But I was always a responsible drunk.

Anonymous said...

Isn't that a bit of a contradiction?

Larry Kelley said...

"A bit", sure.

Everything about alcoholism is a bit of a contradiction.

Walk a mile in my WalMart sneakers ...

Anonymous said...

I have decided not to have my heart attack on a weekend!

Anonymous said...

who cares?

Anonymous said...

It seems this is common, parents fail financially and send kids to public school, then blame the school. Parents fail amd produce failed adults....and we blame the university? The same failed kids and families subsidize an entire community, community complains endlessly.

Now I am starting to get this failure mentality....and it is not only is the commune of Amherst....Massachusetts was better off without it.

Anonymous said...

SEVEN psych commitments?

Why is no one asking anything about the volume of these?

And Larry, the "overdoses" aren't ETOH.