Rescue helicopter unable to land
THE Courtown/ Arklow Coast
Guard Unit were called on Friday morning by Rescue 116 to attend the scene of an accident at Laraheen House in Hollyfort.
Rescue 116 could not land due to the severe weather. A 51-year-old male had sustained a head injury during a fall earlier that Friday morning.
Courtown Coast Guard David Swimburne said the road conditions were impassable in many areas and the paramedics could not reach the patient. Luckily, farmer Paddy Syme ploughed through the snow with his tractor for the Coast Guard Unit to make their way to Laraheen House.
‘The male had fainted and was unconscious for ten minutes,’ said David. ‘As he fell, he had hit his head on a hard surface.’
Paddy had created a track for the Unit to attend the patient and to bring him to the paramedics. ‘The paramedic came from the Kilanerin side off the M11 and could not get to Hollyfort,’ added David.
The Coast Guard Unit brought the patient back to Gorey where the paramedic was waiting at the Garda Station.
The Coast Guard Unit have been busy due to the severe weather. On Saturday night, they were called by local Gardaí to check on an elderly man in Riverchapel.
‘His family from Dublin could not get in touch with him for two days,’ said David. ‘Thankfully when we got there he was all OK in his home.’
During most of Sunday, from lunch time until the evening, they were busy ferrying HSE staff in and out of a residential care home in Laraheen.