Campaigner and expert join calls for emergency rescue helicopter in Geraldton, petition on the way

A campaigner who has been calling on the State Government to base an emergency rescue helicopter in Geraldton says he will be starting a petition to gather support for the idea. The proposal has also been supported by a researcher who has said the helicopter service would have several benefits for healthcare north of Perth. These calls come after an incident last week in which it took nearly six hours for a emergency helicopter based in Jandakot to pick up and transport a sick passenger off the cruise ship AIDAmar, 140km off the Geraldton coast, to Perth. Ian Dempsey, a marine rescue volunteer who has been campaigning for an emergency rescue helicopter to be based in Geraldton since 2016, said he planned to launch a petition. “We know they reduce mortality rates compared to ambulances in the country; to me it’s an issue of human rights,” he said. Mr Dempsey previously organised a petition in 2020 which collected 3000 signatures despite being a physical petition carried out during the height of COVID restrictions. He said the latest petition would be electronic. David Ford, a researcher at Edith Cowan University who has studied the benefits of rescue helicopters, agreed there would be many benefits for the Mid West and neighbouring regions if Geraldton had a rescue helicopter. “For a place like Geraldton, they’re going to provide an important service for rescues, shaving probably an hour-and-a-half off response times … then you’ve got primary retrievals, such as traffic accidents which there are quite a few of … and secondary retrievals, medical patients from Geraldton who could be transported to Perth,” he said. Mr Ford has studied the effectiveness of rescue helicopters for collecting trauma patients directly from incidents compared to ambulances. His team found that between 2006 and 2015, mortality rates were 51 per cent higher for regional patients who were transported by ambulance to a country hospital before being transported to Perth, compared to patients who were flown directly to Perth. The Opposition has also called on the Government to establish a rescue helicopter in Geraldton. The Government said it plans to bring in three new helicopters to its Jandakot and Bunbury bases, which will be able to fly further and will contain enhanced technology. “The upgraded models will have an increased flying range and enhanced technology, allowing crews to fly to Albany or Dongara and back without stopping for fuel,” Emergency Services Minister Stephen Dawson said.