THE GREENLAND LEE-LOW AND A FORECAST ERROR OF THE 8 JANUARY 2005 DENMARK WINDSTORM

Forecasts of the 8 January Denmark Windstorm are compared. In a wrong forecast, the Greenland-lee low is far to shallow, there is less outflow of cold air from west of Greenland and consequently a poor development of the upper trough that fed the windstorm. The analysis of the forecasts and an ETKF analysis support that a correct analysis of the atmosphere in the region between Iceland and Greenland would have been of importance to get a correct forecast of the windstorm over Denmark 3 days later

Emergency department visits in Reykjavik for electric scooter related injuries during the summer of 2020

Publisher Copyright: © 2021 Laeknafelag Islands. All rights reserved.INNGANGUR Rafskútur eru orðnar vinsæll samgöngumáti á höfuðborgarsvæðinu. Erlendis hefur notkun þeirra fylgt nokkur slysatíðni en ekki er vitað um tíðni slíkra slysa á Íslandi. Markmið rannsóknarinnar var að meta orsakir, eðli og afleiðingar rafskútuslysa á höfuðborgarsvæðinu sumarið 2020. EFNIVIÐUR OG AÐFERÐIR Einstaklingar sem leituðu til bráðamóttöku Landspítala vegna rafskútu­slysa á tímabilinu frá 1. júní til 31. ágúst 2020 voru beðnir um að skrá hvar slysið átti sér stað, ástæður slyss og notkun á hlífum og áfengi. Upplýsingum um áverka og afdrif var safnað úr sjúkraskrám Landspítala. NIÐURSTÖÐUR Á rannsóknartímabilinu leituðu 149 einstaklingar aðstoðar vegna rafskútuslysa, að meðaltali 1,6 á dag. Aldursbilið var frá 8 árum upp í 77 ár; 45% voru yngri en 18 ára og 58% voru karlkyns. Í 60% tilvika reyndist orsök slyss vera að farið hafi verið of hratt, viðkomandi misst jafnvægi eða ójafna í götu. Reyndust 79% barna hafa notað hjálm en einungis 17% fullorðinna. Engin börn voru undir áhrifum áfengis eða vímuefna en meðal 18 ára og eldri sögðust 40% hafa verið undir áhrifum þegar slysið átti sér stað. Voru 38% með beinbrot og 6% þurftu innlögn á sjúkrahúsið til eftirlits eða meðferðar en enginn flokkaðist sem alvarlega slasaður samkvæmt AIS-flokkun. ÁLYKTUN Sumarið 2020 slösuðust einn til tveir einstaklingar á dag á höfuðborgarsvæðinu vegna rafskúta en enginn hlaut alvarlega áverka. Reyna þarf að draga úr slysatíðni vegna rafskúta með því að bæta hjólastíga, hvetja til hjálmanotkunar og auka fræðslu um hættu af notkun rafskúta undir áhrifum áfengis og vímuefna.INTRODUCTION: Electric scooters have become popular in Iceland. The aim of the current study was to gather data on the incidence, causes, and severity of injuries due to the use of electric scooters in the Reykjavik area during the summer of 2020. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Individuals presenting to the Emergency Department (ED) at Landspitali between June 1 and August 31 were asked about the location and cause of accident, use of protective equipment, and use of recreational drugs and alcohol. Diagnosis and treatment data was gathered from hospital records. RESULTS: During the study period, 149 individuals presented with electric scooter injuries, on average 1.6/day. Patients‘age ranged between 8 and 77 years, and 45% were younger than 18 years of age. In 60% of cases the cause of accident was that the patient was riding too fast, lost balance, or uneven road surface. Seventy-nine percent of children reported using a helmet, compared to only 17% of adults. No children reported having been under the influence of alcohol or recreational drugs at the time of the accident, compared to 40% of adults who reported that they were intoxicated. Fractures were diagnosed in 38% of patients, 6% needed hospital admission, but no patient suffered serious injury. CONCLUSION: During the summer of 2020, one to two individuals were injured daily in the Reykjavík capital area while using electic scooters, but no serious injuries occurred. Preventive measures to decrease injury rate from the use of electric scooters should focus on infrastructure, encourage helmet use, and education on the risk of injury associated with operating electric scooters while intoxicated.Peer reviewe