Flight for Life Colorado opens new helipad

Non-profit air ambulance service Flight for Life Colorado has opened a new helipad at St Francis Hospital in Colorado Springs, which welcomed its first patient on Tuesday 2 August.

Speaking to 11 News, Flight for Life Assistant Nurse Manager Shelby Jackson said: “This is an exciting change for us – it’s going to help patient care a lot. We used to be on the ground, and it used to be a 5-minute walk with a critical patient from our helicopter to the emergency room (ER) or to an operating room (OR), and now we can be down there in a matter of 30 seconds.”

The new helipad coincides with the completion of other expansions to the St Francis Hospital building, including the completion of its west wing’s new fifth and sixth floors, which will add around 60 new beds when fully opened.

Flight for Life operates from five different bases across Colorado, in Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Durango, Lakewood and Summit.

Kiskatom Fire Department helipad receives $50,000 state grant

A project to build a medevac helipad at the Kiskatom Fire Department in Greene County, New York has received a US$50,000 grant from the state government through its State and Municipal Facilities Capital (SAM) grant program.

The helipad will be used to transport patients from the local area to nearby hospitals for emergency medical care and will be useable by aircraft operated by the Albany Medical Center, the New York State Police, and other emergency medical providers from across the region.

The project includes the construction of an access road from State Route 32 wide enough to accommodate emergency vehicles, as well as the installation of outdoor lighting to support night-time landings.

“Greene County doesn’t have a local hospital, but we do have incredible first responders who work tirelessly to ensure our residents receive the care they need as quickly and safely as possible. I thank Kiskatom Fire Chief Peter Kusminsky and all of the firefighters in this unit for their vision on this project, which will increase healthcare equity across our communities by expanding lifesaving services,” said Senator Michelle Hinchey, Senator for the 46th District (including Greene County) in the New York Senate.

Ontario’s Bluewater Health helipad receives fundraising support

In Ontario, Canada, a fundraising campaign to build an air ambulance helipad at the Bluewater Health hospital in the city of Sarnia, Lambton County, received a C$5,000 donation from the Lambton and Ontario Federations of Agriculture on Friday 29 July.

The project, expected to cost approximately C$900,000, began construction in June, and is expected to be completed in late August or early September. Concrete has already been poured, fencing has been constructed, and a 125m-long walkway to the hospital has been constructed. The project is reportedly around three weeks behind schedule due to a lack of certain supplies, such as specialized lighting.

The helipad is being constructed on land previously occupied by a former high school, which was acquired by the adjacent hospital.

The project also received a C$400,000 contribution from the Lambton County local government, and is around 60 per cent of the way towards its nearly C$1 million funding goal.

Western Australia’s Royal Perth Hospital also recently unveiled a new A$10 million heliport, following the announcement of new helicopters and a renewed HEMS contract.