LETTER TO THE EDITOR:
MANY of us take it for granted that our emergency services will always be there when we need them.
I suspect that they rarely receive the recognition they deserve for coming to our aid when something goes wrong.
So, in some small way, I would like to adjust the ledger by relating our experience while on a bushwalk with the Ben Cruachan Walking Club in the Mitchell River National Park on Saturday, August 27.
Twenty-six club members and visitors were walking on a track south east of the Den of Nargun when one of the participants fell heavily on a steep downhill section and broke her leg.
She was in considerable pain and could not be moved.
We made her comfortable and one of our participants walked back far enough to get a clear mobile signal to call 000, giving the operator GPS co-ordinates for our location.
The police and SES soon arrived and, without any fuss, proceeded to cut a clear path through quite dense undergrowth so that the stretcher trolley could be safely wheeled out to a nearby four-wheel-drive track where the ambulance would take over transportation.
Without exception, the SES, police and ambulance paramedics worked efficiently and professionally, focussed on the wellbeing of our injured walker and the goal of getting her to professional hospital care as soon as possible.
We owe them a debt of gratitude.
Without their professional help we would have struggled to resolve this incident.
When next we read some negative story about our police officers or paramedics, we would do well to remind ourselves that every day they are out there performing many positive tasks so that we can all just get on with our lives.
SES officers are champion volunteers who give up their spare time to rescue us when something goes wrong.
Congratulations all of you.
