Taranaki Rescue Helicopter

Mountain emergency – Guy Vickers

August 2, 2014March 12, 2015 by Sharyn Smart

Cold wait: Guy Vickers waits for the Taranaki Rescue Helicopter to rescue him off Mt Taranaki

My unexpected ‘flight’ while exploring Mt Taranaki

A year after a serious accident on Mt Taranaki Guy Vickers reflects on the accident that he feels could have easily cost him his life.

“This local hill (Mt Taranaki) got me back in the end. I got caught out,” says the Stratford resident.

A very experienced mountain guide from the age of 20 Guy never thought he would receive such excruciating injuries while out tramping resulting in being winched off the mountain by the Taranaki Rescue Helicopter.

“I can’t thank the rescue crew enough, they got me out of a tough situation and they did it with such professionalism and efficiency. I was beyond helping myself in the end and it was great knowing they are there when you need them, they were amazing.”

“The season was a bit later than normal. They quite often say when you have an accident it is a combination of different things all coming together that just don’t quite fit together … and then something happens. That’s pretty much what happened on that day.”

Taranaki Rescue Helicopter winches badly injured man off Mt Taranaki

May 12, 2014 by Sharyn Smart

The Taranaki Rescue Helicopter Trust FRIENDS fundraising campaign is now on.

Become a FRIEND and together we can save lives.
Over the next eight weeks representatives of the Taranaki Rescue Helicopter will be calling homes rallying for help – will you answer the call for help?

By freelance writer Sharyn Smart

Stratford man Guy Vickers says he would have died without the help of the Taranaki Rescue Helicopter crew winching him off Mt Taranaki.

“I can’t describe the feeling when I heard the thump of the copter. It was an amazing feeling. The first person to see me was crewman Phil Dwyer. He pointed to me and gave me two ‘thumbs up’ from the chopper cargo bay. At that point I knew that I was absolutely safe. They’d found me.”

Guy was climbing on the slopes of Mt Taranaki when he fell threw a snow pocket and severely broke multiple bones in his ankle.

“I walked into the gully OK on snow … but as I retraced my steps I chose to move further down towards the gully base. After the fourth step my left foot just broke through the surface of the snow and I went down about a metre where my crampons grabbed on a sloping rock underneath. The weight of my body with my day pack came down on that left foot and just snapped outwards, breaking several bones in my ankle area!”

Taranaki Community Rescue Helicopter : Successful Missions in 2013

April 10, 2014 by Sharyn Smart

The Taranaki Rescue Helicopter Trust FRIENDS fundraising campaign is on now.

Become a FRIEND and together we can save lives.
Over the next seven weeks representatives of the Taranaki Rescue Helicopter will be calling homes rallying for help – will you answer the call for help?

By freelance writer Sharyn Smart

Mt Taranaki claimed 22 of the 178 missions flown in 2013 with 11 requiring the Taranaki Rescue Helicopter to assist Police and Taranaki LandSAR with lost or injured climbers.

The crew’s main rescue area extended beyond the 30 minute driving time radius around New Plymouth with missions requiring patients to be flown as far away as Auckland, Hamilton, Rotorua, Taupo, Taihape and Wellington to specialist care.

The Trust’s two pilots flew missions ranging from rescuing accident casualties, assisting patients with medical issues, hospital transfers and assisting search and rescue.

109 Emergency pre-hospital accident
23 Emergency pre-hospital medical
20 Hospital transfers
26 Police, Search and Rescue

Total 178 missions for 2013 up by 17 (10%) from 161 in 2012

The Taranaki Rescue Helicopter Trust FRIENDS fundraising campaign is now on.

April 9, 2014 by Sharyn Smart

Become a FRIEND and together we can save lives.

Over the next eight weeks representatives of the Taranaki Rescue Helicopter will be calling homes rallying for help – will you answer the call for help?

Taranaki Rescue Helicopter plucks mother and son off Snapper Rock

By freelance writer Sharyn Smart

An evening adventure at Taranaki’s Back Beach had all the makings for an episode of the “Bear Grylls” TV show for an unlucky mother and son.

Fiona Grigg and her son Liam, 15, were “very, very thankful and humble” for the Taranaki Rescue Helicopter crew winching them off Snapper Rock.

“The helicopter came just after nightfall. My stomach sank at the thought of having to stay on the island for the night. I thought I might have to do a ‘Bear Grylls’ number – that is to survive with very little (except he carries a flint and a knife!!!).”

Fiona recalls the night’s events. “Sunday night was fine and warm and the tide had just turned. Two of the kids waded in and swam a little out to Snapper Rock.”

Within 10 minutes sea conditions had deterioratedand only Liam’s friend made it back to the beach.

Fiona, ‘swam and bobbed like a cork’ out to Liam. They attempted to swim ashore from the far side of the island without success and returned to snapper rock. “It was the only thing to do as Liam was cold and a little confused. There was no way I could drag him through the waves.”

Onshore locals lent husband John a cell phone to call for help.