AN AMBULANCE service is considering calling on the military for support as the coronavirus crisis places a huge strain on its staff.

It has been revealed that one in five South East Coast Ambulance Service (Secamb) frontline ambulance workers are currently either sick or self-isolating.

The service is now considering using members of the armed forces to fill staffing gaps.

An ITV Meridian report claimed that 545 of the 2,600 emergency staff employed by Secamb are currently unable to work.

The Argus: A South East Coast Ambulance Service (Secamb) vehicle - the service has been placed under immense strain due to the spread of Covid-19A South East Coast Ambulance Service (Secamb) vehicle - the service has been placed under immense strain due to the spread of Covid-19

The service covers geographical area of 3,600 square miles, including Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, West Sussex, Kent, Surrey, and North East Hampshire.

Chris Blackman, who is based in Hastings, told ITV: "I have been an ambulance worker for 28 years and I have never known sickness like this.

"And most of that sickness is Covid related."

Chris himself contracted the illness last year, and continues to suffer from several related health issues.

He said: "I was unwell with flu-like symptoms initially but didn't think too much of it.

"Within a few days I became very unwell and ended up in hospital.

"I'm still suffering the side effects now; I have memory problems, concentration problems, breathing problems.

"So for anyone out there who is a denier, please take it from me, it's real."

Pip Griffin, a Secamb staff member and representative for the Unison union, explained the impact of the coronavirus crisis on ambulance workers as demand for services continues to rise.

"Crews are emotionally and physically exhausted," she told ITV.

"Shifts are much harder work than we've seen before, we're managing patients in the back of ambulances for much longer amounts of time and a lot of the patients we're going to now are much more sick than they have been previously in the pandemic."

Joe Garcia, operations director for Secamb, told ITV that the ambulance service was  "not discounting any potential option" as it sought for ways to meet demand and ease the pressures on its staff.

The Argus: A Secamb ambulanceA Secamb ambulance

"We have been working very closely with the military liaison officers to ensure that we are able to ask for whatever it is that they are able to provide," he said.

"So that prelimiary work goes ahead to give the military an indication of what we might be looking for, and how they might be able to help us."

A South East Coast Ambulance Service spokesman added: “Along with other NHS organisations, we are exploring a number of options for additional resources to support us during this very challenging period.

"This includes potential support from the armed forces.”

A major incident was declared in Sussex by the Sussex Resilience Forum (SRF) on January 6.

This is "a recognition of national demand and puts all agencies in Sussex in the best possible position to come together to tackle the virus".

"It is a well-recognised and rehearsed escalation that can be expected at times of exceptional need – a major incident was also in place during the summer of 2020," an SRF spokesman said.

"SRF partners are satisfied that they are currently managing the extra demands on the system but agree that they must now make plans for the likelihood that pressures will increase still further in coming weeks."