A Wellington based Westpac Rescue Helicopter transported a patient to safety, after a paraglider crash Saturday afternoon.
 
A 49yr old Wanganui man was injured when his paraglider crash landed on the beach at Paekakariki, north of Wellington, around 1330 local time.
 
"The man crashed from a height of about 5 meters," says Logan Taylor, Westpac Rescue Helicopter crewman. "He was lucky not to land in the water and to be rescued before the incoming tide."
 
The helicopter, with a Wellington Free Ambulance paramedic onboard, landed on the beach near the accident. Once stabilized, the man was transported to the Wellington Hospital Emergency Department with lower back and leg injuries. He is currently being treated and assessed and reported to be in a stable condition.
 
The Life Flight Trust provides two essential community services, the Wellington-based Westpac Rescue helicopter and the Life Flight NZ air ambulance service, based in both Wellington and Auckland. They tell ANN that, "We help to save thousands of people every year, from premature babies through to elderly patients. Whether undertaking intensive care level medical transport, helping accident victims or rescuing a tramper in the bush, Life Flight has one mission: to help save lives."

FMI: www.lifeflight.org.nz