Published: August 04, 2008 10:11 am      

Air Evac Lifeteam to hold open house Friday

Special toThe Times-Tribune

Air Evac Lifeteam, in conjunction with the Williamsburg/Whitley County Airport, will hold a grand opening/ribbon-cutting and open house at 2 p.m. Friday at the airport.

The public is invited to tour the new Air Evac and airport facilities, as well as receive information on the planning and development of the news airport terminal building and 911 facility currently under construction. Refreshments will be available courtesy of a pig roast.

Air Evac membership sign-ups will be available.

The new base in Whitley County will be one of more than 76 bases in Air Evac Lifeteam’s network of air ambulance services. Bases are located in communities in 12 states throughout the central United States. The new base will provide employment for 12 to 15 employees and serve communities within a 70-mile radius of Williamsburg.

Air Evac Lifeteam, headquartered in West Plains, Mo., is the largest independently-owned air ambulance service in the country. Since its founding in 1985, Air Evac has transported more than 130,000 patients in need, serving as the critical link to improved response time and immediate access to medical care facilities across 12 states.

Air Evac Lifeteam was the first air ambulance service in the country to offer a membership program. Members pay an annual fee and, if they are flown by Air Evac Lifeteam for life- or limb-threatening medical emergencies, they do not have to pay for the flight. Memberships are valid in all Air Evac Lifeteam service areas, so members are covered while traveling through Air Evac Lifeteam service areas. Annual memberships are $50 for an individual, $55 for a couple and $60 for a household of three or more.

For more information about the open house, contact Bo Farmer at 417-274-7202.