Why we fly

Jamie’s Story

Jamie Burnett was taking a rest after a hard day of work when he was involved in an accident that would change his life completely.

Jamie Burnett, Northamptonshire

On Sunday 17th August 2014, he was run over by a dumper truck at his construction site. His lower half was crushed – his injuries, which included pelvis fractures, multiple breaks to his leg bones and a large amount of lost skin, were so severe that it looked like he’d been blown up. Doctors described it as the worst case of hip trauma they had ever seen.

Our air ambulance crew and East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) immediately went to work on saving Jamie’s life. Due to massive blood loss, Jamie had to be rushed to Kettering General Hospital for a blood transfusion to stabilise his condition. Warwickshire & Northamptonshire Air Ambulance then flew him swiftly to the major trauma centre at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire, where he was immediately seen for surgery.

Though Jamie’s injuries required a week-long induced coma and a large number of surgeries, incredibly, he was able to go home just five months later.

“When I can, I am going to have a home-coming party and invite the crew of the air ambulance. I am going to present them with a cheque and I have one thing to say to them: thank you for saving my life.

“Until you end up using it, you just don’t realise how much of a necessity it is.”
– Jamie Burnett

With your support, we can keep helping people with massive trauma, just like Jamie.