Chopper Rescue is a unique observational documentary series following the work of the helicopter rescue crews of Emergency Management Queensland (EMQ), who serve the people of far north Queensland. The Chopper Rescue crews are on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and operate out of two bases in the far north cities of Townsville and Cairns. Consisting of pilot, air crew officer, rescue crew officer, paramedic and emergency doctor, the crews cover vast distances from the outer edge of the Great Barrier Reef to the remote outback.

A true observational series, Chopper Rescue does not sensationalise or 'beat up' the extraordinary action which unfolds in front of the camera. As a result the series is a unique and powerful look at human drama and compassion at its most natural and intense.

In episode two, the Cairns chopper must fly to the small Aboriginal community of Hopevale where a baby girl is severely dehydrated. On the way back to Cairns the crew is diverted to pick up a 13-year-old boy with a suspected fractured pelvis. As they fly to pick up the boy at Mossman Hospital, tropical storm clouds gather and the crew must decide whether to fly on using satellite navigation or abandon the task and leave it to the night crew. Meanwhile, wet conditions on Magnetic Island off Townsville contribute to a terrible car smash. A critically injured 22-year-old is trapped in his ute and is in intense pain. The Townsville crew work with local emergency services personnel to free the young man from the wreckage and fly him back to hospital on the mainland for specialist treatment. Time is critical. Without a rapid transfer to intensive carethe 22-year-old could die.

Tuesday, 19 February 2008 08:00PM