HOSPITALS in the county are on standby to take in soldiers who have become war casualties.East Anglian Ambulance crews are also on standby to pick up military patients being flown in to airports in the region to take them to the nearest hospital.

HOSPITALS in the county are on standby to take in soldiers who have become war casualties.

East Anglian Ambulance crews are also on standby to pick up military patients being flown in to airports in the region to take them to the nearest hospital.

Two soldiers are being treated at Chelmsford's Broomfield Hospital after they were flown into the region last week.

Health bosses too today raised concerns about how and where to treat injured Prisoners of War.

But a spokeswoman for Ipswich Hospital denied that they were preparing for mass casualties and said that it would be business as usual at the Heath Road site.

She said that everyone in the NHS would work in partnership to treat the casualties as and when they came in.

Ms Rowsell said: "It will be business as usual for us.

"We will deal with anyone who we are asked to care for in the same way as we do at the moment.

"Everyone in the NHS is very aware of the role we may need to lead if we were asked to care for people."

So far there have been no soldiers admitted to hospitals in the county or in Norfolk, but the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital are also on standby to receive casualties.

However a spokesman said they were not making any major preparations for receiving mass casualties.

It can be revealed though that hospitals in East Anglia have been involved in planning arrangements to deal with major incidents and potentially catastrophic events.

All Strategic Health Authorities have been written to by the Department of Health to check on how prepared hospitals for major incidents in the light of September 11 and the heightened tension in the Middle East.

Emergency planning officers have also been appointed within Primary Care Trusts and have taken part in special training events.

Ms Rowsell for Ipswich Hospital said that by law, hospitals have to be prepared for every eventuality from major rail accidents to chemical incidents.

She said: "Our major accident plan covers all elements of what we could ever expect.

"It is a requirement of all Trusts that they have procedures in place to make sure peoples lives are saved.

"We have been asked to make sure all our procedures are in place and we have done that."

Ms Rowsell said that all plans are updated every month as a matter of course.