By Clayton Barnes, 2010 Writer
The possibility of a disaster during the World Cup is far greater than for any previous international sporting event in South Africa, says Dr Wayne Smith, the head of the Western Cape's 2010 health planning unit.
And paramedics and medical professionals will have to be ready for anything, from bombings to crash landings and human stampedes.
Speaking during a panel discussion at the World Conference on Disasters and Emergency Medicine on Tuesday, Smith said it was "dangerous" for authorities to be over-confident in South Africa's medical ability to deal with disasters simply because the country hosted the Rugby and Cricket World Cups without incident.
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"A soccer World Cup is a completely different environment with far more risks," he said. "If we look at the history of football tournaments, we see that a lot of deaths and injuries have been recorded. A lot of people follow soccer, and lives are often lost if the correct measures are not taken."
Smith said the Western Cape had started working on a 2010 health and disaster strategy more than four years ago. With fewer than 200 days to go to the tournament, more than 95 percent of the province's medical and emergency equipment had already been acquired.
"Alcohol abuse will be one of the main risk factors," he said. "But we are preparing for medical emergencies and disasters of any kind."
The province recently completed a Mass Gathering Medicine Risk Assessment for the event, analysing details such as the type of injuries that could be expected, where and how spectators would queue outside stadiums and fan parks, distance to the nearest hospital from venues, weather conditions and additional hazards.
Faiza Steyn, provincial Health Department spokeswoman, said among the new equipment was a hi-tech radio repeater to be mounted on top of Signal Hill to ensure improved emergency communication into the stadium.
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