Media release

September 9, 2010

DEDICATED WESTPAC RESCUE CHOPPER BASED AT WHITIANGA FOR GROWING POPULATION

Coromandel’s rapidly swelling summer population has prompted a new initiative to base a Westpac Rescue Helicopter in Whitianga for the busy holiday season.

The recent commissioning of an additional chopper by the Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust (ARHT) provides a timely addition to the Trust’s fleet as holidaymakers swell the Thames Coromandel population to 150,000, including a permanent population of 27,000.

The chopper will be stationed at Whitianga from December 26, Boxing Day, to Anniversary Weekend at the end of January. It will also cover Great Barrier Island.

ARHT Chief Executive Bob Parkinson says there has been a 70 per cent increase in the missions they have flown to the Thames Coromandel region between 2006 and the end of 2009.

“During the corresponding period last summer we flew 40 missions down there and to Great Barrier, but we had to turn down another 10 because the helicopter was already in use attending to someone else,” he says.

St John’s Hauraki/Coromandel District Operations Manager, Bruce MacDonald, says it’s great news that the helicopter will be based at Whitianga.

“It will reduce the response time and help us and our First Response service, Police, Search and Rescue and Fire to deal with the huge demand that comes with the influx of people during the summer holidays. It’s also great to see this initiative that we’ve been working hard with ARHT on, come to fruition” he says.

Two things have allowed Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust to help out in the Thames Coromandel region – the addition of a second chopper to its fleet, and the generous donations of some of the local community to ensure the initiative took off.

“Our new chopper’s first mission was in fact to Coromandel, where we winched a forestry worker who had been seriously injured out. It took us about 25 minutes to get there from Auckland, and if we’d been on the ground in Whitianga is would have only taken us about eight minutes,” says Mr Parkinson.

The injured man, Phillip Par underwent surgery on his ankles and suffered a broken jaw and back. Over time he is expected to make a full recovery, and his partner Vickee Ward says Phillip is very grateful to the Westpac Rescue Helicopter.

“Philip thought it was amazing how quickly the rescue helicopter team responded, and to think the response time will be even further reduced will be a huge benefit for all those in our wider community who find themselves struck down by serious illness or accident,” she says.

There is, however, a funding shortfall for the summer service out of Whitianga of approximately $50,000, and local people and the 52 per cent of the area’s ratepayers who come from Auckland are being asked to help out to ensure the service can continue.

People can make a donation directly to be Whitianga-based service by calling

0800 4RESCUE, or at any branch of the Westpac Bank.

For more information please contact:

Bob Parkinson                                                                                 Melanie McKay

CEO – Auckland Regional Helicopter Trust                       Star Public Relations

T: (09) 970 7201                                                                               T: (09) 912 7827

M: 021 736 485                                                                                 M: 021 0200 8550