Powys: Air ambulance base is 'a lifeline' - campaigners

More than a hundred people turned out to meetings in Newtown to discuss the future of the air ambulance bases

Campaigners fear they will lose a "lifeline" if an air ambulance base is moved.

More than a hundred people attended meetings in Newtown, Powys to discuss the air ambulance service.

Last year, a campaign group opposed plans to remove helicopters and rapid response vehicles from Welshpool, Powys and Caernarfon, Gwynedd.

In February, Wales Air Ambulance said the existing bases would remain until at least 2026.

Analysis of call response data found that a change to base locations, operational hours and more after-dark flying would improve the air ambulance service.

It said that the service would be able to go to hundreds more emergencies every year and that every county in Wales would see an increase in the number of calls responded to if the bases were relocated.

However, campaigners in mid Wales - where there has been an air ambulance base since 2006 - say it is crucial that the emergency service remains based in the rural area.

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Banners calling for the base to be kept in Welshpool have been displayed outside farms and other businesses across Powys for months.

Cynthia Duce, coordinator of the campaign, said: "I'm concerned that they could move the air ambulance from Welshpool and what's going to be left for the people of mid Wales. We're so rural here, we don't have any major hospitals - this is our lifeline.

"We have the A44 which is one of the most dangerous roads here in mid Wales, we need that air ambulance kept at its base in Welshpool."

Campaign coordinator Cynthia Duce says residents fear losing a lifeline in the air ambulance service

There were concerns last year that the air ambulance bases in Caernarfon and Welshpool could close and the emergency helicopters and road vehicles relocated to a site in Denbighshire.

Chief Ambulance Services Commissioner Stephen Harrhy, who chaired public meetings in Newtown on the issue, said no decision was set in stone and stressed the engagement process is independent.

"What I'm committed to doing is to make sure we have an open mind around what would the best option would be. We'll be looking at how we get to as many people as we can possibly get to, and also how we take account of local views and interests, which is why this engagement process is really important to me.

"It's really important I understand what people are concerned about, and how we can go about addressing those concerns when we eventually come up with a recommendation."

Teresa Morgan, from Llanwnnog, said the air ambulance response saved her daughter's life

Teresa Morgan, from Llanwnnog near Caersws, spoke at the meeting in Newtown about her experience of the work of the air ambulance - when her daughter suffered a blunt force injury.

"My daughter was airlifted quickly to hospital by the air ambulance, and it's because of the quick response that I have my daughter with me as she is today," she said.

"Her injuries could have been life changing, but because of the air ambulance and the quick treatment she received she's gone on to live a full and healthy life."

Following the events in Newtown there will be further public meetings across mid and north Wales, including in Welshpool, Llanelwedd, Wrexham and Caernarfon as well as virtual meetings held online.