The Brisbane and Townsville LifeFlight Air Ambulance jets airlifted three people to Brisbane overnight, after they were seriously injured in a single-vehicle crash on Norfolk Island.
The fixed wing emergency response was coordinated by Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) and Retrieval Services Queensland.
The jets are currently available to respond to taskings in Queensland and Norfolk Island, under an existing service agreement with the Queensland Government, through Queensland Health.
It’s believed all three patients were tourists and passengers in the vehicle, which crashed into a power and communications pole on the Pacific island, late yesterday afternoon (Thursday 16th March).
The Townsville-based jet was immediately diverted to assist in the emergency situation just after 5:30pm, as the crew was completing another aeromedical mission.
The Brisbane-based Air Ambulance jet was also tasked to fly to the island nation, which is 1400 kilometres off the Australian coast.
The aeromedical crews on board each Challenger 604 aircraft, which include an RACQ LifeFlight Rescue Critical Care Doctor and Flight Nurse, worked alongside local paramedics to transfer the patients from the hospital where they were initially treated, to the waiting aircraft.
The Brisbane jet departed the island first, flying to the LifeFlight base at Brisbane Airport, with a male and female patient, both aged in their 70s, with multiple injuries, on board.
A short time later, the Townsville jet airlifted another female patient, back to the LifeFlight base.
The jets were met by QAS crews and transported all patients by road to the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital.
