Rye Lions helpair ambulance to fly by night

The Lions have been long term supporters of the campaign and handed over another £500 to the Air Ambulance Trust recently.

Veronica Wiseman, Community Fund Raising Officer for the Trust informed the Lions that in the short time that night flights had been operating they had already saved a number of lives.

Veronica also gave the Lions an insight to the workings of the Trust and pointing out that they receive no statutory funding and rely almost entirely on the generosity of the public and organisations such as the Lions who fund raise on their behalf.

The Trust has two helicopters, one based at Marden in Kent and the other at Redhill in Surrey.

From these two bases they are able to reach any part of Sussex, Kent and Surrey in under twenty minutes.

Each aircraft is crewed by an experienced pilot, doctor and paramedic, who are trained in advanced pre-hospital care, which gives them the knowledge and skills necessary to assess and stabilise critically ill and injured adults and children.

This means that a number of specialist clinical procedures that are normally only available in the resuscitation area of an emergency department can be delivered to patients at the scene, such as, general anaesthesia, advanced pain relief and for a small number of patients surgical interventions.

Effectively, what they aim to do, as far as possible, is bring the emergency department to the patient and then take them quickly and directly by land or air to the most appropriate hospital best able to treat their injuries.

The air ambulance was in action recently at Camber when it air-lifted a seriously injured motorcyclist to hospital.

Details of all missions undertaken by the air ambulance can be found on the Trust’s website.

Terry Cobby, from Rye and District Lions, said: “We had hoped to be given a tour of the Trust’s facilities at their Marden base and a chance to examine the helicopter.

“However, having just entered the hanger, an emergency call was received and we had to make a rapid exit. We were then able to watch the helicopter take off. This was the second mission flown that day and it brought home to us just how vital these donations are.”

Rye Lions are involved in a number of fund raising efforts in the area including organising the big annual Rye Raft Race and holding a Burns Night concert at Beckley village hall to raise funds for Macmillan Cancer Relief.

They also enjoy a number of social events including quiz nights and barbecues.

Any adult in the Rye and surrounding villages wishing to join the Lions should call 01797 252382 for more information.