This story was prepared by the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter and is being published by the New Zealand Herald as advertorial.

Help the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter and your gift will go twice as far

A rescue helicopter can make the difference between life or death for those needing saving in some of New Zealand’s most rugged terrain.

Now, the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter team are the ones needing help.

The central North Island is in line for a top-of-the-line primary rescue helicopter offering greater cabin space and landing capability. But the rescue service needs $616,071 to fund a crucial winch for it.

The H145 twin-engine rescue helicopter will take over as the main aircraft servicing the Central Plateau and Lakes region, providing 24-hour emergency care every day of the year.

In 2023, the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter carried out 524 missions across the region.

In a gesture to reflect how critical the rescue winch is, the Greenlea Foundation Trust will match every dollar given, up to $300,000. Meaning every dollar donated will go twice as far.

A rescue winch is often needed to help lift patients out of areas road ambulances can’t reach – sometimes lakes, sometimes isolated bush.

Rotorua woman Erin had been about 15km into the Pureora Forest riding the Timber Trail when she hit a pothole, flew off her mountain bike and crashed onto her shoulder.

Feeling helpless and in immense pain, Erin said she knew she was too far in to turn back and faced another 25km ahead before she could get help. Her daughter hung from a tree to get enough of the patchy cellphone reception to call for help. Because of the remote and dense terrain, the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter was dispatched and soon a Critical Care Flight Paramedic was winched down to Erin.

Because there was nowhere safe to land nearby, a stretcher was winched down to a recently milled area, Erin was then secured in a harness and flown to the waiting stretcher.

“The skill and accuracy of the pilot was incredible. In a short 20 minutes I was at Rotorua Hospital.”

Erin said the rescue crew were “incredible” and without them and the winch, she did not know how she would have got out of the forest.

This region has some of the highest numbers of winch rescues in New Zealand, making the need for the new winch vital.

Greenlea managing director Tony Egan said the new rescue winch was an expensive but remarkable piece of equipment, and his organisation was proud to contribute towards the rescue helicopter.

“It does have a huge impact on communities, especially in areas with farming and adventure tourism, which is close to our heart.”

The Greenlea Rescue Helicopter makes up a fleet of helicopters run by charity Philips Search and Rescue Trust which provides air health and rescue services free of charge.

Trust head of fundraising and marketing Sharni Weir said it aimed to encourage widespread community support, and Greenlea’s help made the fundraising goal more achievable as it shared in the value of looking after the community.

People can donate online or call us on 0800 11 10 10.