Richard Jones CEO of the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service takes five with Great Walks and talks about the Byron Coastal Charity Walk.
"I have been CEO of the Westpac Rescue Helicopter for 27 years now. Over that time I have seen great change across the Service, including the addition of the Tamworth base in 2000 and taking on the operations of the Lismore Service in 2017 as part of our current 10-year aeromedical contract with NSW Ambulance.
We now operate a world-class aeromedical service out of three operational bases in Belmont, Tamworth and Lismore with a Deep Level Maintenance Facility and HQ in Newcastle.
We perform three types of missions – Pre-Hospital Emergencies, Inter-Hospital Transfers, and Search and Rescue missions. Pre-Hospital emergencies are what we are most recognised for – when patients are hard to access, their condition is time critical or if they cannot be accessed by ground-based emergency services.
The aeromedical capability of the helicopter along with its endurance and speed enable our Helicopter Critical Care Medical to access patients in any environment to deliver the highest level of care.
Inter-Hospital Transfers are conducted for critically ill or injured patients that require specialist care and timely transfer from a regional hospital to a specialist tertiary facility. Given the vast area of NSW our area covers these missions are incredibly important in transporting patients in a timely manner to the appropriate Hospital in the region, or even into Queensland.
Finally, we can assist agencies with Search and Rescue capabilities on land and at sea. Our Service supports national and state agencies, such as Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), NSW Police, Surf Life Saving Australia (SLSA), as well as volunteer support agencies to locate missing persons in the most extreme of environments.
The community has always been and continues to be a vital source of income for our operations. We are a registered charity and heavily reliant on community funding to support its operations, raising about $14 million annually across Northern NSW.
The Byron Coastal Charity Walk has become a signature event of our Northern region and draws in participants from across NSW and southern QLD.
The route has been designed to be a mixture of sand, roads and trails along the coastline to ensure it’s suitable for beginner to experienced walkers.
Now in its 10th year, we are looking to deliver a great celebratory walk in 2023 after floods mean the postponement of our 2022 event.
Participants can choose to walk or run 12km from Byron Bay to Broken Head, 24kms to Lennox Head or the full 36kms to Ballina. We would love to see you there!"