As he climbed into the saddle, 73-year-old Ken Moore was blissfully unaware of the drama about to unfold.

Systematically he went about his business of conducting the afternoon property check, until suddenly something spooked his horse.

Although he was an experienced rider, caught off guard Ken fell heavily and awkwardly to the ground immediately sustaining serious injuries to his chest, arm and hips.

Ambulance crew responded quickly to the accident, but as he lay on the ground, incapacitated, in pain and fearing for his life, Ken knew he had to get to hospital as quickly as possible.

It was then from above Ken heard what he imagined to be the gentle thump of an angel’s wings cutting through the clouds.

Emergency crew in the Westpac Rescue Helicopter had been alerted to the situation and were preparing to land; help had arrived.

That afternoon, Ken was air-lifted to Tamworth Base Hospital, where despite his serious injuries, he was able to make a full recovery.

It takes just one look at the Westpac Rescue Service mission list to see how important the service is to residents of the Upper Hunter Shire.

In April last year the service transported a 47-year-old woman to the John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle after her car hit a tree before rolling down an embankment in Bunnan, in August a 13-year-old Scone boy was flown to John Hunter with a compound fracture to his leg after falling from a horse and in October a 57 year-old Scone man was flown to The Royal North Shore hospital after suffering serious steam burns to his abdomen and lower regions.

These are just a few examples of the more than 1000 operations carried out by Westpac Rescue each year.

The statistics speak volumes and it is no surprise the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service has become one of the Upper Hunter’s most popular charities.

Since the start of the year, local groups have already donated funds to the service on at least three occasions and it is a sure bet the generosity will not stop there.

For those who come in contact with Westpac Rescue it is undoubtedly an experience punctuated by pain, fear and confusion.

But those in trouble are met by a crew that is serious, determined and professional.

Knowing exactly what they are doing, nothing is left to chance; people’s lives are at stake.

They work quickly and accurately, and have the innate ability to block out everything around them, focusing only on the job at hand.

At the rescue base in Newcastle, Intensive Care Flight Paramedic Genevieve Davey, explains it is the only way she can do what is required of her.

“It’s hard and you never get used to it,” she says of accidents.

“But you are so focused on what you are doing you just tend to block everything else out. The person you are working on is what’s most important,” she said.

Sitting in her chair Genevieve is an attractive woman who looks no different than you or I.

The difference is Genevieve is a veteran intensive care paramedic with 19 years experience saving lives.

In her years on the job, Genevieve has seen and experienced things the average person would recoil from, and although she is quick to smile and often laughs with other crew members, beneath her casual exterior is a serious woman with an incredible intensity about her.

“I can’t even imagine how many call outs I’ve been to,” she said.

“But the numbers would be high.We get so involved in what we do, but it’s what we’re trained for. We are never really removed from the fact someone or their family is suffering though.”

Genevieve explains the most common call outs in the Upper Hunter are trauma caused by motor vehicle accidents, horse related accidents and snake bites.

“We get called out at least every couple of days and sometimes two to three times a day,” she said.

A typical shift for Genevieve and her partner Josef Pichler means operating a road ambulance in Newcastle until they get called out on a Westpac rescue job.

“When there is serious trauma it is vitally important to get people to a major medical facility within the first hour,” explained partner Josef who has been a paramedic for the past eight years.

According to Josef, it is often within this time frame that a life can either be saved or lost.

“We call it the golden hour. That hour can make all the difference when someone has experienced serious trauma. It takes about 50 minutes to get from the Newcastle base to somewhere like Scone, and so you can see why it is important to have medical crew ready as soon as possible,” he said.

One common mistake people make according to both Genevieve and Josef is to give out property addresses when they call 000 operators.

“Giving us an address when someone is hurt is no good. The best thing people can do when they call the emergency number is to give a good description of the property. Tell us is it to the right or to the left, is there a green roof? Describe the farm to the operator as though looking down from the air,” Genevieve said.

Josef adds that another thing people can do is to use their mobile phone.

“If someone can use their mobile phone to give us exact GPS coordinates, then that is the very best thing they can do to help us,” he said.

Another perspective when it comes to rescue operations is that of senior crewman Peter Cummings.

At first glance you could be forgiven for assuming Peter was gearing up for some kind of military ops, instead of a rescue mission.

Dressed in a black flight suit with crew patches on the sleeves, Peter’s air of authority is unmistakable.

He walks with the confident gait of someone who knows exactly what they are doing and as he sits down and smiles, has the ability to make anyone feel safe.

He speaks openly and although he is relaxed and friendly, it comes as no surprise to learn he has a long history in military service.

“I spent 18 years in the Navy as a member of the air crew and have been with the rescue service for the past 21 years,” he said.

Logistically Peter controls of all aspects of a rescue including flight plans, navigation, and communication.

“Basically I do the job of a mission coordinator and deal with sites and details as well as emergency service transmissions,” he explained.

Peter’s impressive credentials make him a perfect fit for the job, having flown helicopters for the past 32 years both in and out of military service.

With a lifetime of experience under his belt, you have to believe Peter when he says the rescue service is invaluable when it comes to Upper Hunter emergencies.

“We see a lot of horse riding accidents in the Upper Hunter and not all of them are people being careless, a lot of them are just that- accidents. The time frame involved in getting people to hospital from places like Scone can really make all the difference,” he said.

And as if to drive home the point, in the background a siren rings out signalling an emergency.

“There’s been an air crash in Scone just by the airport,” said pilot Mark Goolmeer as he collects stretchers and different pieces of equipment from the hangar.

Peter quickly gives a look to say it is time to go, before dropping his eyes and shaking his head.

“I hope we make it in time,” he says.

But as the crew gears up for take off the siren suddenly rings out once again, this time to signal the rescue has been called off.

Slowly the crew climb out of the chopper and make their way back toward the hangar.

“That happens sometimes,” Peter said as he rests his equipment back down on the ground.

“Ambulance have confirmed there was a plane crash at the airport in Scone but the pilot wasn’t injured,” he said.

While this was certainly a lucky day for the Scone pilot, not everyday is so easy for the rescue team.

“This is a 24/7 operation and we go on a lot of call outs,” Peter said.

“I remember once I went out to a tiger moth crash at Lochinvar. It was a show for the Canteen Camp, you know for kids with cancer and there was crash. The pilot survived for a while in the rescue helicopter but later died. I remember it was hard because it happened in front of kids who were struggling with their own illness. And then there’s the ones with kids involved, children who are suddenly involved in these accidents through no fault of their own. I hate seeing kids hurt at the best of times,” he said.

But for Peter there are also times when a rescue pays off and he becomes part of a life saving team.

He said these kinds of cases were what made the job worthwhile.

“I went to a car accident at Tea Gardens once and transported a woman who had received head injuries. Well, she survived and recovered and later on came back to the base to say she was engaged, then again when she was married and again to show us her baby. That kind of thing really gives us job satisfaction, you know when you can see the results of what you’ve done,” he said.

As for lessons learnt, Peter says there are three things he lives by since flying with the rescue helicopter service.

“I never go rock-fishing, ride motor-bikes or get on horses,” he said with a rye smile.

“I just don’t reckon it’s worth it.”

For Peter these may be things he can do without, but for the rest of us who cannot imagine giving up the pleasure of horse sports, or hearing the roar of a dirt bike, we can all sleep easier knowing should the worst happen, our lives will be in the hands of incredible people like Peter, Genevieve and Josef.