In a bid to save more lives Northland firefighters will make it to emergencies even quicker thanks to an initiative that will see them fly to serious incidents in isolated areas.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the Northland Rescue Helicopter have teamed up to provide a faster way of getting firefighters to incidents where people need to be cut out quickly so speedy medical care could follow.
The helicopter crew will fly St John flight medics along with two firefighters to incidents where people are trapped and need to be cut free.
It will be particularly beneficial in remote areas of the region where it could take volunteer fire crews on the ground longer to reach.
Experienced rescue helicopter pilot Dean Voelkerling said there were a number of emergencies the crew had been called to that patients would have benefited from a fire team being on the scene as soon as possible.