Father and son, Lowry and Shane Mathers from Bready, Strabane, Co Tyrone recently made a donation of £3,800 to Air Ambulance NI following the sale of one of their cows on their family farm.
Shane said, “We chose to support Air Ambulance NI Charity as they do so much for the farming community.”
The contribution will help ensure the charity service can continue responding quickly to serious incidents across Northern Ireland, delivering critical pre-hospital care when every second counts.
Damien McAnespie, Fundraising Manager at Air Ambulance NI, said: “We are very grateful to the generosity of Lowry and Shane in choosing to support Air Ambulance NI via the sale of one of their livestock. Their donation will make a real difference in helping us remain operational and ready to respond whenever we’re needed. Agricultural incidents account for approx. one call per week that the HEMS team respond to and this could be animal attacks, slurry incidents or incidents related with farm machinery. Their donation will ensure that the service will continue to be there and ensure that everyone gets the best possible pre-hospital interventions in the quickest time possible, thank you.”
The charity Air Ambulance NI, in partnership with the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, provides the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) for Northern Ireland. The service brings urgent medical assistance to anywhere in the province, operating seven days a week for 12 hours per day. The HEMS team attend patients who are seriously ill or injured, bringing emergency pre-hospital care direct to the casualty with the aim of saving lives, brains and limbs. The aircraft can reach anywhere in the province within twenty-five minutes.
On average the medical team are called upon twice every day, whether that to a serious road traffic collision, farm or workplace accident, sport and leisure incident or a serious medical emergency.
As a local charity, Air Ambulance NI aspires to raise £3 million each year to maintain and sustain this service so public donations are crucial. One of the simplest ways to support is by becoming a member of Club AANI and donating via a monthly or annual subscription. You can contact the charity directly by emailing info@airambulanceni.org or calling 028 9262 2677.
