SKYCITY Beach Patrol Takes to Auckland Skies This Summer
Tuesday 20 October 2009, 2:54PM
By SKYCITY Entertainment Group
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SKYCITY is teaming up with the Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust this summer, to launch the SKYCITY Beach Patrol to run from Labour Weekend 2009 until Easter Weekend 2010, helping Aucklanders to remain safe while they have fun in the sun and surf.
The SKYCITY Beach Patrol initiative will send the Rescue Helicopter on a regular return run from the base in Mechanics Bay up the East Coast to Omaha Beach and back down the West Coast beaches on weekends throughout the period, and daily during the busy holiday season from 26 December to 17 January 2010. This proactive service is in addition to the standard call-out arrangement which sees the Westpac Rescue Helicopter respond to callouts for emergency accident, medical or search and rescue purposes. Any material event likely to impact Aucklanders enjoyment of the beaches will also be communicated immediately through media networks.
Chairman of the Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust, Murray Bolton, says, “The beach is one of the most popular places for Aucklanders during the summer months and this new proactive service we are providing thanks to SKYCITY, will help keep Aucklanders safe.
“Having the helicopter in the air monitoring the region’s beaches as part of the SKYCITY Beach Patrol will make us much more effective and able to respond quicker to any safety issues on the beaches,” Mr Bolton said.
Nigel Morrison, SKYCITY Chief Executive, says, “I’m very proud that SKYCITY is teaming up with the Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust to help make Auckland’s beaches safer this summer. We are excited to be getting this great initiative off the ground in what we hope will be a long-term partnership to benefit the community and the thousands of people that visit Auckland and our beaches over the summer months. We all look forward to seeing the SKYCITY Beach Patrol helicopter in our skies very soon.”
The SKYCITY Beach Patrol is part of a major sponsorship programme which will enhance the services provided to the wider Auckland region by the Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust. In addition to the standard crew of an advanced paramedic, a fully trained pilot and a qualified crewman, the Beach Patrol service will include a qualified surf lifeguard provided by Surf Lifesaving Northern Region.
SKYCITY Beach Patrol information will be broadcast on The Radio Network Auckland frequencies as part of hourly news bulletins and traffic updates, keeping the region’s beach goers up to date with information on surf conditions, any shark sightings and traffic getting to and from the most popular beaches.