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When Lifeflight can't come to the rescue

Lifeflight of Maine aims to respond to every call it can, but there are limitations that prevent its helicopters from responding to every scene.

SANFORD, Maine — If you've been seriously injured in an accident, and need help in a hurry, we've come to expect that Lifeflight will come to the rescue.

However, there are no guarantees.

While the non-profit emergency rescue team Lifeflight of Maine is committed to responding every time the call comes, that's not always possible.

"It's a huge challenge," Lifeflight executive director Tom Judge said. "We're sort of everywhere, but there's not a lot of us."

Judge said time, distance and limited resources are big factors in whether his choppers can respond to a call.

Lifeflight has three helicopters in service and one that serves as a backup. There is one helicopter at each of Lifeflight's three locations in Sanford, Lewiston and Bangor.

Judge said it is very possible for a Lifeflight team to land at a scene, and have another call for help come in. Its limited helicopters and personnel prevent the organization from being able to respond to every call.  

Another major factor is weather. 

Lifeflight pilots are tasked with studying the weather conditions to determine if it's safe to fly. 

Pilot Ian Swett said, "Anything below 4 degrees Celsius, which is about 39 degrees Fahrenheit, we start to watch out for because wet snow and freezing rain can be really dangerous to a helicopter because we could pick up icing and that would basically inhibit the helicopter from flying."

Clouds or anything that could cause poor visibility are also issues.

Despite the limitations, Lifeflight is committed to responding to those in need every day, in every corner of the state. 

Judge says, "Life flight is a small, specialized resource that takes care of everywhere in Maine. There is no community in Maine that is not the home of a life flight patient."

As a non-profit, life flight relies on the generous support of Mainers, who believe in its mission to keep us all a bit safer.

To learn more about donating to Lifeflight, click here

In Maine, there are an average of 280,000 9-1-1 calls each year for medical emergencies.

Lifeflight says it responds to approximately 2,800 of those calls.

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