Sunday saw an early start for the Trust Tairāwhiti Rescue Helicopter whose final mission of the week was a 2.30am call-out to a trauma at Ruatoria, from where the patient was flown in stable condition to Gisborne Hospital.

The team completed four other missions for the flying week of December 4 to December 11.

– On Wednesday (12noon) they responded to a medical event at Te Kaha, with the patient flown in stable condition to Gisborne Hospital.

– The following day the team stepped up to transfer a victim of a motor vehicle accident from Gisborne to Waikato Hospital. As they were off-base from early afternoon, missions to Tokomaru and Waihau bays were covered by an out-of-zone rescue helicopter.

– On Saturday (10.30am) the team was dispatched to Ruatoria for a medical event, with the patient flown in a stable condition to Gisborne Hospital.

– And in a quick turnaround the team two hours later returned to Ruatoria, this time in response to a trauma. The patient was again flown to Gisborne Hospital in stable condition.