In 2021, your Greenlea Rescue Helicopter carried out 535 missions, with over 43% of these being to the Central Plateau, impacting the lives of 231 patients in the region. This included 60 inter-hospital transfers, 79 medical events, 20 motor vehicle accidents, 4 rescues and 68 farm/rural missions. A total of 202 missions were carried out to Taupō, Turangi and the surrounding areas, 151 of these missions were to Taupō, 35 were to Turangi and the remaining were to surrounding areas such as Oruanui, Kuratau, Whakapipi River and Tokaanu.

The Greenlea Rescue Helicopter responded to 4 injured mountain bikers, one who had sustained head and neck injuries in Waihaha, a rural community in the Taupō District. The onboard crew were also tasked to the Pureora Timber Trail, in Ongarue, twice in one day for two mountain bikers who had both sustained head injuries whilst mountain biking. Another mountain biker who was seriously injured on the Wairakei Forest Mountain Bike Park was winch rescued by the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter.

Your rescue crew get patients where they need to be to receive the best care for their situation, this includes transporting patients from hospital to hospital, which is often time-critical. Your Greenlea Rescue Helicopter completed 6 missions in 24 hours in May, half of which were inter-hospital transfers. The Greenlea Rescue Helicopter was first dispatched to Taupō Hospital to assist a woman in her 30’s who required urgent maternity transport. The woman was airlifted to Waikato Hospital for further treatment. The next morning the onboard crew was tasked to Taupō Hospital for a woman in her 60’s who had suffered from a cardiac event. The onboard crew flew her to Waikato Hospital for further treatment. That evening, the helicopter was dispatched to Taupō Hospital to transport a man in his 60’s who had suffered a cardiac event. He was transported to Waikato Hospital.

You never know when you might need a rescue helicopter, especially in remote or rural locations hard to reach by road ambulance and in time-critical situations where every second counts. With a total of 68 farm/rural missions being carried out by your Greenlea Rescue Helicopter to the Central Plateau in 2021, these patients were provided with rapid medical care at the scene and flown to hospital, so that they could continue to receive the best care possible.

Motor vehicles accidents make up a large portion of missions for your rescue helicopter. With 20 being carried out to the Central Plateau in 2021, there was a high demand for the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter on the roads the past year. The Greenlea Rescue Helicopter responded to two motor vehicle accidents in Turangi in one day. Once the helicopter was landed at the scene of the first accident, the patient was treated at the scene before being flown to Rotorua Hospital for further treatment. Upon returning to Taupō the onboard crew was then tasked back to Turangi for another motor vehicle accident. The patient was flown to Rotorua Hospital. A serious crash between Taupō and Turangi on Christmas Eve led to the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter and Waikato Westpac Rescue Helicopter crews working together to provide rapid medical care to patients in need. A woman in her 30’s was treated and transported with serious injuries to Waikato Hospital by the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter.

With skiing being a big part of New Zealand’s colder months, your Greenlea Rescue Helicopter was able to assist patients in popular skiing hotspots such as Whakapapa, Turoa and Tongaririo National Park over winter. The Greenlea Rescue Helicopter responded to a callout to Whakapapa Ski field for a patient suffering from a medical event. The onboard crew treated the patient at the scene before flying them to Taupō Hospital for further treatment. The onboard crew also assisted a patient who had sustained a fractured ankle in Tongariro National Park. A patient who had suffered a fall in Turoa was also airlifted by the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter to hospital or further care.

These missions were possible thanks to generous donations from the public and support from our sponsors. Help keep missions like these available to the Central Plateau and surrounding regions by donating today at rescue.org.nz.

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