An estimated nearly one-third of the ambulance crews serving Tallinn were stuck waiting in line from Tuesday afternoon.

Kristel Hallikas, spokesperson for the Tallinn ambulance service (Tallinna Kiirabi) said: "Starting from 2:00 p.m. today, Tuesday, ambulance services in Tallinn have been significantly held up, due to the reduced ability of the North Estonia Medical Center (PERH) to accept patients brought in by ambulance.

This meant at the time of writing on Tuesday night, long wait times should be expected when calling an ambulance in Tallinn, Hallikas added.

The ambulance services chief doctor Raul Adlas told ERR the situation was "quite concerning," adding that since around 2 p.m. eight of the city's 22 ambulance crews had been waiting at ER doors with patients in tow, but were unable to pass them on, as the hospital was not accepting new admissions.

"As a result, ambulances cannot leave the hospital, meaning other emergency calls are delayed," Adlas went on.

The cause of this situation was unknown at the time ERR spoke to Adlas.

"I am also not aware of when the situation might improve, so we are unable to make any significant plans at the moment. We have informed the Health Board and are awaiting further instructions," he added.

Vassili Novak, head of the Mustamäe-based PERH's emergency room, put the delays down to the unusually high number of severe trauma cases they had to deal with on Tuesday.

Kristel Hallikas said other hospitals in Tallinn had stepped in to help alleviate the situation, but not to the extent of resolving it, at the time when she spoke to ERR.

Raul Adlas said resources were "stretched," with a new emergency call coming every six minutes on average yet around a third of resources "effectively out of action, stuck in line at the hospital."

"Consequently, response times are lengthening, and our operations are severely disrupted," Adlas reiterated.

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