When the first film in the series, Fifty Shades of Grey, was released in cinemas on Valentine's Day 2015, the Fire Brigade issued much the same caution, although it seemingly fell on deaf ears.
Since the film hit theaters, the Brigade has recorded a surge in citizens stuck in sticky situations, such as bodily appendages becoming trapped in saucy devices such as clamps, rings and handcuffs.
The increase in Fifty Shades-esque incidents comes at a time when callouts for people being trapped or stuck due to less-salacious objects has fallen. For instance, in 2015/16, the number of occasions firefighters attended people being stuck in everyday household items was 459. In 2016/17, the figure fell to 376.
Embarrassing incidents cited by the Fire Brigade include a man forced to undergo surgery to remove a metal ring stuck on his penis. Firefighters resorted to pedal cutters — a hydraulic handheld piece of cutting equipment — to remove the ring.
Fewer people are getting stuck in objects but '50 shades' incidents are up leaving kinky #Londoners #50ShadesofRed https://t.co/Q5c6Cmj0VZ pic.twitter.com/IxUmb3N42S
— London Fire Brigade (@LondonFire) February 14, 2017
In all, 23 men have been caught short by penis rings between 2012 and 2017; each incident costs taxpayers around £326 (US$406), meaning these total cost of these incidents is £830,000 (US$1,035,000).
In addition, 102 people were freed from handcuffs in the same period; figures for the cost of extraction are unavailable.
Still, despite the embarrassing nature of these incidents, and the high costs involved, the Brigade urges the public to call 999 if a sexual emergency does arise.
"It's amazing that we predicted years ago that this could happen, and it's come true. Still, we're pleased fewer people are getting themselves stuck in difficult situations and reducing callouts, however, it does seem the Fifty Shades of Grey effect is still leading to some embarrassing callouts. Our advice is simple — if something doesn't fit, don't force it," a spokesperson for the London Fire Brigade told Sputnik.
It's not merely rings that attract body parts, the spokesperson added.
One man was moved to place his reproductive organs in a plastic bottle, which again necessitated a surgical removal.
"In geographic terms, there seems to be a north/south divide — incidents are typically much higher in the South on average, with the three highest boroughs for 'fifty shades' incidents over the past decade being Bromley (232), Croydon (208) and Lambeth (186), all in the south. As for why that is, I couldn't say," the spokesperson concluded.
