How appeal went into Top Gear

AIR ambulance paramedic Pete Vallance is a huge fan of Top Gear. "It is one of the few shows on telly that's really worth the licence fee," he says. "The three of them presenters Richard Hammond, Jeremy Clarkson and James May are a really good team."

Even so, when he arrived at the scene of that shocking jet car accident at Elvington airfield a week ago, he didn't realise he had come to save Richard Hammond.

The Top Gear presenter had been pulled from the wreckage of his Vampire dragster and placed on a spinal board by paramedics at the scene.

Pete and fellow air ambulance paramedic Darren Axe had been told on the 15-minute flight to the crash scene that a Top Gear shoot was taking place at Elvington.

It was only when he heard one of the people crowding around the stricken presenter call him by his name that Pete realised who it was. "You're used to him being all jolly and happy," he says. "This was totally different."

The presenter had just regained consciousness, but was confused. "He was talking but not making sense, asking repetitive questions," Pete says. The kind of confused questions people with head injuries normally ask - "Where am I? What's happening?" - repeated over and over again.

It was clear to Pete and Darren that the presenter had suffered a head injury - not only from the nature of the crash, but also from his confusion, and from the bruising and swelling to his face.

The nearest hospital was York District, but the decision was taken to fly instead to Leeds General Infirmary (LGI), which has a specialist neurological unit.

There was no hanging around. "It is no good spending time at the scene with head injuries," Pete said. The air ambulance arrived at Elvington at 5.55pm. By 6.06pm it had taken off again, and by 6.18pm the ambulance and its badly-injured patient had reached LGI.

The helicopter landed on the heliport on the hospital's roof, where hospital staff were waiting to rush Hammond into resuscitation.

When they were first alerted about the crash, the air ambulance team thought it was a joke.

Air ambulance dispatcher David Gardner was in the air ambulance control room at Leeds/Bradford Airport monitoring the live emergency data feeds that pour in from each of the three Yorkshire ambulance services.

It was just before 5.40pm on Wednesday, September 20, at the end of a quiet day. A red message appeared at the top of one of the data monitors. TRAF', it said - signalling an accident involving a car. David checked the details: a jet car, a high-speed crash, a person trapped.

He alerted the ambulance crew. Their initial response was that he was taking the mick.

"Dave said, Hey guys, there is a jet car that has crashed at 300mph' and they thought it was a wind-up," said air ambulance chief executive Martin Eede.

The accident ticked all the boxes for an air ambulance priority - a high-speed crash, the driver trapped, the nearest hospital some distance away. Within a couple of minutes, at 5.40pm, the ambulance was scrambled and in the air on its way to the rescue.

We will never know what would have happened had Mr Hammond had to rely on a conventional ambulance to take him to hospital. But in the case of serious head injuries, minutes can make all the difference.

The air ambulance team's thoughts and wishes are now with him and his family.

The presenter was said today to be "continuing to make good progress" on a general ward at LGI.

One day, Pete Vallance would like to meet him. But most of all, he just wants him to get better.

"It would be fantastic to see him on telly, fully recovered and back presenting Top Gear, where he should be," he said.

"It is up to us now to make sure that we use the money well and wisely for the good of Yorkshire" - Martin Eede

FUNDS raised for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance by fans of Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond were expected to smash through the £250,000 barrier today.

By 5pm yesterday, the total donated through the website of online motoring magazine pistonheads.com had reached £241,000, including Gift Aid.

"I'm confident we will have £250,000 by close of play," said Martin Eede, air ambulance chief executive.

Money began pouring in as soon as news of the popular presenter's accident spread, and the appeal took off when Mr Hammond's wife, Amanda, asked for donations to be made to the air ambulance instead of flowers.

At one point, £1 a second was pouring into the appeal, although that has now slowed to a mere' £39 a minute, admits Mr Eede.

The money will be used to buy a second air ambulance for Yorkshire - already being dubbed the "Hammi-Copter" - that will act as an enduring tribute to the popular presenter in whose name the money has been given.

Mr Eede said today the air ambulance had received some hate mail, in the shape of a letter accusing the charity of "being greedy" and cashing in on Mr Hammond's misfortune.

Nonsense, Mr Eede said. The Yorkshire Air Ambulance is a charity that runs without Government funding, and relies solely on donations and sponsorship.

The charity recently bought its existing helicopter, which had previously been leased, for about £1.5 million. Buying it outright was cheaper than leasing, and would save about £350,000 a year, Mr Eede said.

Even before Mr Hammond's accident, the need for a second helicopter had been identified.

The air ambulance attends about 900 incidents every year, but there are a further 330 jobs it cannot go to because the helicopter is already in use.

"That is about 330 lives potentially at risk," Mr Eede said.

A meeting had been due to be held on Thursday of last week - the morning after Mr Hammond's accident - to discuss the launch of a £1.5 million appeal for a second helicopter. By that morning, £10,000 had already been donated through pistonheads.com - and that sum rapidly grew.

"So we were going to launch an appeal - but the appeal got launched for us," said Mr Eede. "It is up to us now to make sure that we use the money well and wisely for the good of Yorkshire."

The search was already on for a second helicopter - and all being well it could be flying as soon as next spring, Mr Eede said.

The charity aims to move its operational base from Leeds/ Bradford Airport to a new £2 million HQ at Tockwith by Christmas next year, planning approval permitting.

The move would give the life-saving helicopter a more central base in Yorkshire - and bring it much closer to York, Selby and the Yorkshire coast.

Flight times to York from Tockwith would be five minutes, compared to ten minutes from Leeds/Bradford. Selby would be seven minutes away and Malton 15 minutes.

Those vital minutes shaved could save lives, the charity says.

There will also be a satellite' station at Malton for use during the busy summer months. "There is a huge exodus to Scarborough, Whitby and Bridlington over the summer," said Mr Eede. "Accident statistics show that an air ambulance based at Malton during that period would cut down dramatically the time spent picking up patients from the Moors, Wolds and coast."

Once the second air ambulance is bought, there will also be another station in the south of Yorkshire, to provide rapid cover across the whole of the county.

If you would like to make a donation to the Yorkshire Air Ambulance, phone 0845 120 6060 or go online to yorkshireairambulance.org.uk

Hammond's recovery is continuing

TOP Gear presenter Richard Hammond was today continuing his recovery at Leeds General Infirmary following his crash in a jet-powered car at Elvington Airfield. A hospital spokeswoman said yesterday that the 36-year-old presenter, who is being treated for a brain injury, was "continuing to make good progress".

Mr Hammond is now on a general ward at the hospital. The BBC's website says that if he continues to do well he may eventually be transferred to a hospital closer to his home outside Cheltenham.

Grateful mum raises funds for life-saving 'copter

SUE Leighton knows just how important the air ambulance can be. She believes it saved her daughter's life.

Ten-year-old Charlotte was airlifted to hospital earlier this year after she suffered severe face and leg injuries in a road accident near her home at Tollerton, Easingwold.

A fundraising drive launched by Charlotte has raised more than £15,000 for the air ambulance.

Sue is stunned by the response of Richard Hammond's fans.

"The generosity of everybody has been fantastic," she said. "Nowadays people don't have much money and to raise that much in a week is absolutely amazing."