Wānaka police and St John are reminding revellers to drink and behave responsibly over this holiday break.

Over the past week there has been an influx of young people entering the Wānaka CBD in the evening and drinking alcohol, and the police have attended a number of disorder incidents involving young people and house parties without suitable adult supervision.

After these incidents police have spoken with parents who often say they didn’t know what their kids were up to and that they didn’t think they would ever be involved in such behaviour, Wānaka response manager Sergeant Kim Chirnside said.

“Our message to parents is to ensure that any alcohol provided is given and consumed in the home environment, and not to assume their children would not make poor decisions around alcohol,” Kim said.

“We are working to keep our youth safe during this holiday period, but we all have a part to play.” 

Kim said local police are well-versed at policing over busy periods like New Year’s Eve, and will have a presence and be visible in key areas.

Wānaka police have offered the following tips:

• If you are planning on drinking it’s a good idea to have something substantial to eat before you start
• Have a glass of water between each alcoholic drink
• Look after your friends and stick together so you can watch out for each other
• Have a place to meet up with your friends if you do get separated
• Make sure your phone is fully charged before you head out
• Never leave your drink unattended or accept any drinks that you haven't personally seen poured, especially from strangers
• If you have concerns about someone’s behaviour, call the police
• Plan how you are getting home, make sure you have a designated driver or put aside money for a taxi. If you plan to walk, go in pairs or groups.

“We want parents to take note of this advice too, so they can make sure their young ones have the information they need to be safe while having fun,” Kim said.

St John is preparing for the emergency service’s busiest night of the year. PHOTO: newztalk.zb

St John is also reminding the public to look after each other on what is the busiest night of the year for the emergency ambulance service.

The highest demand for the emergency ambulance service is typically New Year’s Eve between 10pm and 2am when calls into the 111 ambulance communications centre triples – with a third being alcohol related.

St John ambulance operations deputy chief executive Dan Ohs said the most common calls are for unconscious people, falls, traumatic injuries and car crashes.

“St John Ambulance always prepares for an increase in demand during the holiday period, but we’d like to remind everyone that the most life-threatening incidents will always be prioritised.

“This means that if your condition isn’t time critical, there may be a delay in responding,” he said.

“If you find you do need our help – please be kind and respectful to our ambulance staff. We see assaults against our people increase over the festive season which is never tolerated.”

Dan also reminded people that it is important we all continue to follow the Ministry of Health guidelines on keeping safe, including practicing good hygiene, physical distancing, wearing a face mask and scanning into public places.