From the East Coast to Ohura: A range of jobs for Taupō's Greenlea rescue helicopter

The Greenlea rescue helicopter lands at The Chateau to collect a skier transported down the mountain with a medical event. Photo / Supplied

Crashes, medical events, sports accidents and serious burns made up the variety of jobs the Taupō-based Greenlea rescue helicopter attended in the second half of October.

On Thursday, October 22, the helicopter was sent to State Highway 1 near Atiamuri where a vehicle had rolled over. A female patient was assessed and treated by the helicopter's intensive care paramedic before she was transported to Waikato Hospital.

On its return to base, the helicopter was called to Taupō Hospital to transport an 11-month-old child with an acute medical condition. He was in serious condition and airlifted through to Rotorua Hospital.

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Two days later the rescue helicopter was off to two more motor crashes. The first was on the Desert Rd near the Three Sisters area. A 42-year-old man was treated by the intensive care paramedic and ambulance and then flown to Waikato Hospital in a critical condition.

In the afternoon a second crash had the helicopter called out to near Ohura, west of Taumarunui. A 61-year-old man was flown to Waikato Hospital in a critical condition.

Later the same day, the helicopter performing an inter-hospital transfer, collecting a female patient at Taupō Airport and taking her through to Rotorua Hospital shortly after 9.30pm.

The Greenlea rescue helicopter at the Desert Road. Photo / Supplied

The last day of the ski season, Monday, October 26, also brought the last skier needing help. In the early evening of Labour Day, the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter was dispatched to Whakapapa for a skier in his 30's who was suffering from an acute medical condition.

An ambulance transported the patient down to The Chateau to meet the crew who had landed at the base. They airlifted the skier through to Waikato Hospital for further treatment.

While returning to Taupō the crew was diverted to Craters Mountain Bike Park for a patient in his 50s who had crashed, resulting in serious neck and back injuries.

Due to the location in the park, the patient was winched out and then transported to Waikato Hospital's emergency department.

At midday on Friday, October 30, the Greenlea rescue helicopter crew were dispatched to Mangakino to assist an ambulance crew with a 32-year-old patient who had an acute medical condition. The patient was treated and transported to Waikato Hospital for further care.

Not long after arriving back in Taupō, the crew was sent to Rotorua to collect a patient who had full-thickness burns to both hands and arms. Due to his injuries, the patient was flown to the burns unit at Middlemore Hospital.

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On Sunday, November 1 at 8.30am the on-duty helicopter crew headed to the National Equestrian Centre on the outskirts of Taupō. A rider in her 20s had fallen on a cross country jump, with the horse then landing on her. She received multiple serious injuries and was stabilised at the scene, assisted by the ambulance crew. The woman was flown to Waikato Hospital for further medical care.

A long flight was on the schedule later the same day when at around midday the Greenlea rescue helicopter was tasked to Ruatoria on the East Coast for a male in his 60s who had collapsed in his home.

He was in serious condition and was carefully monitored by the onboard intensive care paramedic while being flown to Gisborne Hospital for further care.