Amy Guscott has good reason to be grateful that Elmore AFC and Tiverton Town Council supported the establishment of a community landing site at her local football ground, which enabled the air ambulance to land after dark.

Amy was making soup at her Tiverton home for her two girls, six-year old Evie and three year old Lottie. The kids were running in and out of the kitchen when one of the girls who was wearing a lanyard, which swung out, catching the jug of vegetable stock and pulling it off the hob. The hot stock splashed little Lottie on her right shoulder, her stomach and her back. Immediately Amy took action:

It took me a couple of seconds to realise what had happened. I took Lottie’s top off and put her in the shower. My first instinct was to get a wet towel and wrap it around her. At the same time I was ringing 999 and the air ambulance was dispatched.

It was half past five on a November evening and already dark. An ambulance arrived within nine minutes and after 10 minutes the air ambulance landed at Elmore Football Club.

I didn’t know they had a night landing facility, but I’m so glad they have,’ says Amy. ‘Within 25 minutes, we had landed at Southmeads Children’s Hospital. The paramedics were fantastic and kept Lottie distracted by showing her cartoons on a mobile phone and they helped to keep me calm as well.

Any was especially grateful that DAA paramedics, Dave Dungay and lee Hilton stayed with her and Lottie throughout the transfer from Southmeads to Bristol Children’s Hospital. She added

'That DAA got Lottie to hospital made a difference. Exeter does not have a specialist burns unit, so getting her quickly to the right treatment wa also very important. It looked really bad at the time, but lottie has healed amazingly well.’

Lottie spent 13 days in hospital and had a small skin graft, but was given the all clear. She adores her Ambrose Bear given to her by the DAA crew and still talks about her flight in a helicopter.

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