10% of Coast Guard helicopter usage for rural patients

The transport of patients from rural areas to major hospitals represents one in 10 of the record 1,000 missions completed by the Coast Guard helicopters so far in 2015.

In missions over the weekend, the services based at Shannon and Sligo went to the assistance of a young preganant woman on the Aran island of Inish Mór on Saturday night, while assistance was also called to a boy with leg injuries, but the Sligo Coast Guard helicopter was unable to land in foggy conditions and road transport was used.

The two west coast helicopters have been the busiest this year, with 343 missions completed by Sligo-based Rescue 118, and 330 by Shannon-based helicopter Rescue 115.

Between these and the other two at Dublin (148 missions) and Waterford (179 missions), the 1,000 missions are a 10% increase on last year’s work for the Coast Guard’s helicopter services.

Assisting the National Ambulance Service, by transporting critically ill or injured patients from rural areas to major trauma centres, at Cork and Galway university hospitals, is a regular reason for calls on the west coast helicopters.

The Coast Guard said it expects this helicopter emergency-medical-service demand to remain at between 10% and 15% of all missions in 2016.

“Our helicopter search-and-rescue crews are highly trained and dedicated to serve the people in their communities,” said Gerard O’Flynn, national manager of the Coast Guard’s search-and-rescue services.

“Their professionalism and dedication, as well as high aircraft availability, allow our crews to return people home safely from an even greater number of dangerous situations.”

Many of the services were carried out in challenging weather conditions, at night and deep into the Atlantic.

However, the new helicopter fleet can take on long-range missions and has improved cruising speeds, as well as being equipped with equipment that includes forward-looking infrared low-light cameras, ‘night sun’ searchlights, ambulance-level paramedic care facilities, and satellite communications systems.

During 2015, the Naval Service dive team has been involved in nine search and recovery operations, following requests from the Coast Guard and An Garda Síochána.

Many of the operations lasted several days, and the remains of six people were recovered, as a result of these searches, and returned to their loved ones.