By Sarah Stone

New STARS landing site in Tisdale on the table

Jan 13, 2015 | 5:59 AM

A new Shock Trauma Air Rescue Society (STARS) landing site is being discussed by multiple agencies.

The Kelsey Trail Health Region (KTHR), STARS and the Town of Tisdale came to the table in the fall of 2014 to talk about where a new landing site can be built.

Peggy Ratcliffe, corporate communications officer with the KTHR, said STARS has been unable to land adjacent to the Tisdale hospital with high volumes of construction around the facility over the past few years as a long-term care facility was built on one side and a healthplex was added on the other.

During this time, STARS has been landing across from the hospital.

“Now that most of that construction has been completed, we just wanted to revisit where the most appropriate landing site would be for STARS,” she said.

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“They’ve determined that they want to establish a site northwest of the hospital and so at this point they’re just trying to, basically, get the details in terms of the levelling of the ground and snow removal and if they are any trees and what not that have to be removed to make the site optimum.”

Between the two projects around the hospital, construction has been ongoing for around three years.  Before that, Ratcliffe said, the hospital didn’t experience STARS landings, which shows how the area and medical services are growing.

“It’s a good thing because that means that our patients are getting quick access to the healthcare services they need in a time of an emergency,” she said.

As for how much preparing the site will cost, Ratcliffe expects it to be “very minimal” as it is not a landing pad, which would take paving.  A timeline is unknown at this time.

The KTHR reaches over 40,000 people over a large area.

sstone@panow.com

On Twitter: @sarahstone84