A hospital has cancelled surgeries and appointments as it faces record patient demand.
East Surrey Hospital has declared a critical incident as staff work furiously to cope with huge numbers of patients.
Planned operations and outpatient appointments have been cancelled at the Redhill hospital, which a spokesperson said had never been so busy, Get Surrey reported.
They insisted that the issues were not related to the fuel crisis or a spike in coronavirus cases.
Have you been impacted by the cancellations or high demand? Email webnews@mirror.co.uk
On Tuesday Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust (SASH), which runs the hospital, issued a plea for people to "think" before going to its accident and emergency department.
"SASH is really busy at the moment," it said.
"We’re urging you to think before going to A&E. Minor injuries units can treat most urgent but not life-threatening injuries.
"If you’re unsure where to go please call 111 who can point you in the right direction. Help us care for those who need it."
Trust chief executive Michael Wilson said he hopes pressure will ease quickly and appointments can return to normal.
"Due to extremely high demand on our services we have postponed outpatient appointments and some elective surgery while our doctors and nurses pull out all the stops to provide safe care for our patients," he said yesterday.
"We expect these services to resume in the next 24 to 48 hours."
All time-critical and cancer surgery is continuing unaffected, it said.
Anyone who is not contacted by the hospital should attend their appointment as normal.
Councillor Kanika Sachdeva, who also represents the Redhill West and Wray Common ward, said: "I also would like to shout out for our amazing health professionals who are serving the residents with the utmost care, even during the busy times."
Reigate and Banstead Councillor Natalie Bramhall said issues with GPs appointments had contributed to the pressure.
"There are a huge number of patients visiting, just going to A&E, because they can't get GP appointments; that makes the situation even worse," she said.
"I was actually in the hospital having an operation a few weeks ago. I was in there for four or five days, and it's an amazing hospital. It's calm, well-run. You receive kindness and professionalism.
"If they have had to do this, I am sure it won't last long. One thing to remember is East Surrey Hospital covers a huge population; it covers far more than most hospitals in the country."
