Lifestar Air Ambulance will begin operating out of Hinesville base Thursday

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) -When people experience traumatic injuries, every second counts.

That’s why LifeStar Air Ambulance is adding service to Hinesville.

By car, it takes around hour to get to the nearest Level 1 Trauma Center, which is Memorial Health in Savannah.

But LifeStar says by helicopter, it only takes 13 to 14 minutes.

“Hinesville is approximately a little over an hour drive from a local level one trauma center, and also a PCI center that treats STEMI patients, stroke patients, and the closest NICU/PICU center, so we figured that we could bring access to the community there and bring them closer to one of those facilities,” Lifestar Area Manager Jason Bober said.

Though patients won’t have to wait until they get to one of those facilities to begin treatment since the helicopter is equipped with tools like a ventilator. One of the most important things the helicopter has, however- isn’t a machine.

“We carry blood and plasma on all of our transports, and that’s a huge tool that we’re able to bring to the community because there’s plenty of research that shows that early administration of blood products to trauma patients increases their survivability,” Bober said.

LifeStar 2, as the new base is called, will be staffed with a critical care nurse, a critical care paramedic, a pilot, and a dedicated mechanic. It’ll operate 24/7, 365.

“We’ll be located at the Sky Ranch Airport which is in Hinesville, which I think is a great location for this facility. We’re extremely excited to be able to provide this service for a community in need.”

LifeStar will begin operating out of their Hinesville base Thursday.

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