Two people who owe their lives to the Great Western Air Ambulance recently helped the charity to celebrate its 8th birthday by visiting their base near Bristol.
GWAAC was formed in 2008 when it was recognised that there was a need for an air ambulance to serve the counties of Bristol, Bath and North East Somerset, North Somerset, Gloucestershire, South Gloucestershire and parts of Wiltshire.
The first emergency call came in on 3rd June, when the crew were called to a road traffic collision on the M5, at junction 21 for Weston-super-Mare.
Since then the dedicated critical care paramedics and doctors have attended 15,642 jobs, by helicopter and critical care car.
To help the crew celebrate the anniversary, ex-patients Peter Whitbread and Gary Daw visited the base.
Gary needed the help of the crew in 2010, when he passed out while paragliding, 100ft above Selsley Common in Cirencester.
Plummeting to the ground he suffered a bleed on the brain, and was treated at the scene by the Critical Care Team, before being airlifted to hospital.
He said: “I was 100 feet above the road when I felt everything closing in on me and I passed out. I came too in the bottom field and there were people around me, one of which was a doctor. It was changed to the air ambulance after I told him I had passed out in the air.”
In 2014 Peter was driving home to Hillesley in Gloucestershire with his wife Pam when he blacked out, and crashed into a wall.
The force of the collision caused Pam to break her wrist, but Peter was left fighting for his life, with serious injuries to his knees and head.
The Critical Care Team arrived at the scene in 15 minutes, providing life-saving treatment before escorting him to hospital by road ambulance.
Peter said: “I am so lucky that they came out for me and so quickly. Because of their skill and dedication my recovery has been made so much easier.”
Whether someone was having a cardiac arrest at home, involved in a road traffic collision, or fallen off their horse or bike, the air ambulance is able to be at their side within 20 minutes, providing life saving care and transporting them to hospital.
This is often the difference between life and death, and is the reason that more people have gone on to make a full recovery.
GWAAC chief executive John Christensen said: “I want to thank every single person who has donated or volunteered for Great Western Air Ambulance Charity as none of this would have been possible without you.
“I know that the people we have saved and their families are eternally grateful. It is important that people know we need to raise £2.3million every year to stay operational.
“Thank you all for your unwavering support, and we look forward to being there for people in need for many more years to come.”
