Peterborough airport rejected for base

by Sarah Deeth, Examiner Staff Writer

Mother Nature may be primarily responsible for ORNGE's move from the Toronto Island airport to Hamilton.

And she may be the primary reason the air ambulance service opted to move its central base west to Hamilton, instead of east toward the city.

Tom Lepine, chief operating officer for ORNGE, said the medical organization looked at airports throughout the province before deciding to leave the Billy Bishop Toronto Centre Airport for Hamilton.

Included in that survey was the Peterborough Airport, he said.

Lepine said they counted the number of favourable weather days at each location, days that would enable ORNGE to get a helicopter, or a plane, off the ground.

On-sight weather reporting, 24/7 air traffic control services, runway lengths and having emergency services on-scene were also factors in their choice, he said.

Toronto Island is a terrible place for a mission-critical operation, he said.

Employees have to rely on a ferry to get to the base, there's no room for expansion and all missions are dependent on good weather conditions, he said.

Hamilton proved to be the best location for ORNGE, Lepine said, adding that the decision was backed by a medical advisory board that oversees its paramedics.

Some, including the City of Kawartha Lakes council, have expressed concern about the move, arguing it means longer waits for patients in need of critical care.

Lepine argues that it will actually allow them to reach more patients, because they'll be able to get more flights off the ground.

"This is a medically based decision," he said. "It's more about our ability to get to patients in the first place."

The move also allows a fleet of airplanes to be used, which can fly over adverse weather conditions that helicopters can't get through, he said.

Most patients will already be with emergency services when an air ambulance is called, Lepine said, adding that responding directly to a scene, such as a vehicle collision, is a small part of what the service does.

Most patients are already at a hospital, he said, and are getting transferred to another location.

That's not a whole lot of comfort for city fire Chief Trent Gervais.

"There's no question that there's going to be a delay in response time," Gervais said.

If ORNGE is transferring a patient, he said, it's an indication the situation is already fairly devastating for that person.

Gervais believes the airport would be able to accommodate ORNGE.

Based on the move, early reports put the increase in ORNGE's response time at about 18 minutes.

Lepine said it's actually closer to 12 minutes.

Gervais said it doesn't matter.

"It's a loss of response time," he said. "That can make the difference between life and death."

It's an issue that affects the whole area, he said, and not just Peterborough.

The move was announced in October. Lepine said it will happen later this year.

NOTE: Jonathan Bennett, spokesman for the Peterborough Regional Health Centre, said he was unaware of any concerns the hospital had with ORNGE's move to Hamilton.

sdeeth@peterboroughexaminer.com