YORKSHIRE Ambulance Service received more than 1,300 emergency calls in 12 hours on New Year's Eve.

Between 6pm on Thursday and 6am today, the service received 1,302 emergency calls, with more than half that amount (695), made between midnight and 6am, and an average of one 999 call every 12 seconds at one point.

A spokesman for the service said the service was busiest in the early hours of the morning, and there were 96 emergency calls to assaults between midnight and 4am.

Ben Holdaway, locality director at the ambulance service, said: "As always New Year’s Eve was a busy time for us and we received a high volume of alcohol-related calls, particularly in the early hours of the morning. Our community medical units and police and paramedic teams provided valuable support and were able to treat people who had too much to drink or those who had sustained minor injuries without them needing to go to hospital."

Mr Holdaway said New Year's Day was busier than last year, with an increase in the most serious calls of 15 per cent between midnight and 8am - 445 compared to 386 last year - many of which were caused by alcohol-related incidents.

He said: "In the early hours of New Year’s Day we received a significant number of emergency calls to patients who had been assaulted while out celebrating the start of 2016. Clearly this is distressing for those directly involved, but it also places extra pressure on us and partner services.

"New Year’s Eve aside, demand for our service continues to increase. So our New Year’s message for 2016 is to remind members of the public to use the 999 service wisely, choose their healthcare options appropriately and help us to ensure our vital resources are available for those with a genuine life-threatening emergency."