Coronavirus: Yorkshire Air Ambulance funding hit

The Yorkshire Air Ambulance charity said it was facing a shortfall of £1.2m because of pandemic restrictions on large social and fundraising gatherings

Yorkshire Air Ambulance is facing a cash deficit of more than £1m because of the Covid pandemic, officials say.

The life-saving charity, which runs two rapid-response helicopters, had expected it would miss out on around £420,000 because of cancelled events.

However, because fundraising activities have decreased into the autumn and winter it now estimates the shortfall will be about £1.2m.

The service treated 1,150 patients last year, it said.

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Officials at the charity said that at the beginning of the pandemic they had estimated a loss in fundraising over the summer.

But because the crisis has gone on into the autumn and winter months "fundraising activity is still significantly decreased, mainly because larger gatherings are still prohibited".

Peter Sunderland, chairman of the Yorkshire Air Ambulance charity said: "It really has been the most challenging time for our teams, with strict restrictions still in place across much of the county, and most events being cancelled due to stringent social distancing measures.

"Whilst we have adapted to the new fundraising climate with virtual events and digital fundraising activities, this has been unable to replace the income that would have been generated from many of our larger events that take place annually."

In April both of the helicopters were grounded as its medical staff were diverted to deal with the coronavirus pandemic.

At the time The Yorkshire Air Ambulance and Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust said that critical care consultants were to be redeployed back to their respective hospitals to focus on emergency medicine, anaesthesia and critical care.