A motorcross race meet ended abruptly on Sunday for one rider who was injured in a fall on the juniors track.

The Trust Tairāwhiti Eastland Rescue Helicopter was dispatched just after 11am to the property inland from Whangara where the accident happened, flying the young patient in stable condition to Gisborne Hospital.

The flight marked the end of a busy week for the service, which completed 10 missions in the seven days from Monday, May 27.

In between times they managed to fit in a special training session with Phil Mudgeway, crew trainer for Search and Rescue Services Ltd (the operating company formed by five North Island rescue helicopter organisations, including the Eastland Helicopter Rescue Trust).

Mr Mudgway worked with the four crewmen on the team, which is completed by four pilots and four critical care flight paramedics.

Having initially trained the crewmen at SRSL’s Taupo base he makes regular visits to the Eastland Helicopter Rescue Trust hangar to conduct proficiency checks and to help build and sharpen their skill base.

However, because the team needs to cover shifts 24/7, 365 days a year, Mr Mudgway says getting all four together for training was a rare opportunity.

In terms of getting their helicopter from A to B crewmen do everything from refuelling and briefing passengers to offering navigational support, updating pilots about weather en route, and identifying and briefing landing sites, sometimes while using night vision goggles.

“They also have medical training so they can assist the on-board critical care paramedic, and they need good organisational skills as they’ll often be working on patient extraction plans,” Mr Mudgway says.

“We work to bring all those qualities and skills together and keep developing them to build capability going forward.”

Mission log

– The Trust Tairāwhiti Eastland Rescue Helicopter had a busy Monday (May 27) with a 1am call to a medical event at Ruatoria (patient flown in serious condition to Gisborne Hospital); a 9.50am dispatch to a medical event at Maraenui (between Te Kaha and Opotiki, patient flown in stable condition to Whakatane Hospital); and a 2.30pm medical event at Tolaga Bay (patient flown in stable condition to Gisborne Hospital).

– On Tuesday they responded to another medical event in the early hours (12.20am), this time at Ruatoria from where the patient was flown in stable condition to Gisborne Hospital.

– The team completed a further two missions on Wednesday — to a trauma at Tikitiki (4.15am); and to another at Te Araroa (2.50pm), with both patients flown in stable condition to Gisborne Hospital.

– On Thursday the team again completed two missions, to a medical event at Ruatoria (10.49am, patient flown in stable condition to Gisborne Hospital); and another at Tokomaru Bay (9pm, patient, flown in serious condition to Gisborne Hospital).

– At 4pm on Friday the Trust Tairāwhiti Eastland Rescue Helicopter responded to a medical event at Te Araroa (patient flown in stable condition to Gisborne Hospital)

– Having been turned back from Saturday’s mission that saw them approaching Matawai, the team’s final job for the seven-day period was on Sunday, (11.32am) when they were dispatched to a motorcycle accident inland from Whangara (patient flown in stable condition to Gisborne Hospital).

CAPTION: ON TRACK: Dispatched on Sunday in response to a trauma injury, the Trust Tairāwhiti Eastland Rescue Helicopter team found a landing site in the middle of a motocross track inland from Whangara. Picture supplied