As thousands flocked on their way to the annual Castlewellan agricultural show on Saturday, a young local girl was playing on her bicycle in Castlewellan Forest Park with her friend when she sustained a near fatal injury.
Alana fell off her bicycle and the handlebars gouged her leg severing veins near an artery. She had lost almost half her blood by the time she arrived at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast. Her friend’s father was first on the scene and noticed that she losing blood fast.
Local PSNI officers were then called on the scene quickly, and the Air Support Unit and Northern Ireland Ambulance Service literally helped to save the life of Alana Casement by stemming the blood loss.
Officers from the Newcastle Neighbourhood Policing Team were on duty at the Castlewellan Show when the accident happened and were informed by a member of the public that she had fallen off her bicycle nearby and had sustained a serious leg injury and was haemmoarraging badly.
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The PSNI helicopter lands at the Castlewellan show to respond to an emergency as a 11-year old girl sustained a serious injury in Castlwellan.[/caption]
The officers rushed to the young girl’s assistance immediately and administered first aid along with local members of the community until the paramedics arrived.
Realising the seriousness of the girl’s injury, the officers then called for the Air Support Unit to be tasked immediately in order to convey her to hospital for treatment as quickly as possible. The PSNI helicopter landed at the site a short time later and took Alana and a rapid response paramedic to the Riyal Victoria Hospital where she underwent emergency surgery on her leg. The girl remains in hospital where her condition is now described as serious but stable.
Independent Unionist MLA for South Down, John McCallister. has praised the emergency services for saving the life of Alana Casement. Mr McCallister said, “After listening to reports of what happened at Castlewellan Park, it is clear that the quick action of PSNI officers and emergency services, mean Alana Casement is alive today and should hopefully make a full recovery.
“I have nothing but praise for our emergency services and this proves once again the exceptional level of skill, dedication and commitment they demonstrate every day. We are very fortunate to be served by such a fantastic team of individuals. By all accounts this could have been a very different story and I would like to wish Alana a full and speedy recovery from this very frightening accident.”
Inspector Mark Peters from Newcastle Neighbourhood Team said the actions of the officers involved had helped to save the young girl. He added: “When the officers realised how seriously injured the young girl was, they took immediate action to do everything possible to help her We have since been contacted by others who were involved in the incident and we have been told that without the help of those officers, the young girl may not have survived.
“This could have ended in tragedy and I am just glad the officers, both the local neighbourhood and response officers and the crew from the PSNI helicopter, were able to do their bit to help save this young girl’s life. We would all like to wish her a speedy recovery.
“As police officers, one of our main priorities is to keep people safe and this is another example of how the PSNI and our partner agencies work together to do this. As an officer, being able to help someone in this way makes our job worthwhile.”
Ruth McNamara, Ambulance Service Area Manager, praised the actions of all concerned in this operation. She said: “With schools now out for the summer, we have noticed an increasing number of young people out and about enjoying activities which have been planned by various community groups. With such large numbers, there is always the potential for accidents to happen. Whilst the ambulance service will respond to every incident as quickly as we can, it is often the actions of those first on the scene that play a major part in the saving of a life.
“On this occasion it was the quick thinking of the PSNI officers and St John Ambulance volunteers who were on duty at the event that ensured that this young girl was given every chance to survive her ordeal.
“The Rapid Response Paramedic who arrived on the scene has been fulsome in his praise for these officers and we are delighted that the co-operation between the two services has had such a positive outcome.”
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