NZCT grant funds new ambulance for Whanganui paramedics

St John Whanganui is to soon take delivery of a new ambulance after a $100,000 grant from the New Zealand Community Trust. Photo / NZME

The Whanganui District will soon be home to a new St John ambulance, after a grant from the New Zealand Community Trust.

The new ambulance, a generation 4 Mercedes Sprinter, will be based at Whanganui's St John depot on Tawa St, near Whanganui Hospital.

The ambulance is the main type used by St John and costs more than $200,000 to purchase and equip with first-response equipment.

The $100,000 grant was provided by the NZCT from the profits of pokie machines at seven locations across Whanganui.

According to St John's Central Region fundraiser Sarah Flowers, the vehicle will be a welcome addition to the Whanganui fleet, with demand for ambulance services increasing across the region.

"Our ambulances are under an increasing amount of strain due to the continual increase in demand for our service. Not only are we attending more incidents every day, but also travelling further distances," Flowers said.

"We needed to purchase a new, fully equipped ambulance to ensure we are successfully meeting increasing patient need, using the best possible resources to make sure the best possible outcomes for every patient we treat.

"We also wanted to ensure the health and safety of our ambulance officers by giving them the best possible equipment to work with."

St John remains a charitable organisation, relying on funding from organisations and members of the public to operate.

The organisation's service covers around 90 per cent of the New Zealand population, with more than 488,000 patients nationwide transported by St John in the last financial year.