New alpine ambulances are snow valuable
July 28, 2023in News
Snow-goers heading to Victoria’s high country this winter will be treated to smoother and quicker transport in the event of an emergency, with new snow ambulances hitting the slopes.
Ambulance Victoria (AV) has welcomed four vehicles to its growing fleet in recent weeks, bolstering its specialist emergency alpine response in time for this year’s ski season.
The Can-Am Defender and Ski-Do vehicles that are now stationed at
Mount Buller and Falls Creek.
The new wheels have already been busy at Mount Hotham and Falls Creek, with a Can-Am Defender and Skidoo stationed at both sites.
Specifically designed for snow conditions, the Can-Am Defender is a side-by-side over-snow vehicle which has been purpose-built to manoeuvre Victoria’s mountainous conditions.
Ambulance Victoria Hume region Area Manager Rob Heaslip, who helped with the design, said early reports were that the vehicles had received a warm welcome.
“The new snow vehicles are already having a significant and positive impact to our Alpine resort communities, by reducing transport time, patient exposure to the elements and reliance on other agencies,” Mr Heaslip said.
“We anticipate that with the vehicles improving our ability to access patients in challenging snow locations, it will also improve our response times to snow bound locations, particularly cases overnight.”
The Can-Am Defender will make transport smoother and quicker for
patients injured at the snow.
He said the Can-Am Defender allows paramedics to manage patients in a sheltered environment similar to a miniature ambulance.
“Our crews can now access patients directly at their lodges or other snow-locked areas with a full suite of equipment and manual handling tools, helping with ease of access when it matters most,” he said.
“The Can-Am Defender has a custom manufactured pod and is capable of loading patients flat for transport along the slopes. Its tracks can drive over snow and ice, meaning it can travel to patients that can’t be accessed by a regular ambulance.
“The Skidoo has a large capacity to carry equipment and can quickly access steeper terrain away from formed tracks. This vehicle is also available for our specialist wilderness response paramedics to access patients outside of a ski resort.
“Before these new vehicles, both patients and paramedics were often exposed to the elements, which is obviously another challenging dynamic in an emergency.
Now patients can be effectively treated and stabilised while being accommodated in an enclosed stretcher.”
The Can-Am Defender was purpose-built to assist patients at Victoria’s alpine resorts.
The four extra snow vehicles have been added to AV’s alpine resources following the successful introduction of the Can-Am over-snow ambulance last year.
Previously, ambulance crews used Ski-dos towing a sled to access and transport patients in alpine areas.
The good news is set to continue in 2024, with Ambulance Victoria looking to add more snow vehicles at Mount Buller in time for next year’s snow season.