News / Clickimin helipad to be retained permanently
THE EMERGENCY helicopter landing pad at Clickimin is to be retained on a permanent basis after receiving the backing of Shetland Islands Council’s planning committee.
The Lerwick helipad – which has been in use between two grass pitches south of the leisure centre since March 2016 – initially received temporary planning approval, but full permission was applied for in February.
The proposal to retain the helipad, which has on average 1.6 landings a month, was roundly supported by members of the planning committee on Tuesday.
Lerwick North councillor Malcolm Bell moved to approve the application, which was seconded by council leader Steven Coutts.
The landing site is used by the coastguard helicopter and the ambulance service in situations where there is danger to patients’ life or limb as it is in close proximity to Lerwick’s Gilbert Bain Hospital.
The meeting heard from Philomena Leask, who spoke on behalf of local residents opposed to retaining the helipad permanently due to the proximity to their houses.
She said windows in her home across the road vibrate when the helicopter touches down and that there is a “quite horrendous noise”.
Among other concerns raised by locals were the proximity to other buildings like the new Anderson High School, the smell of aviation fuel and the possible devaluation of property.
Leask stressed that their problem wasn’t with the coastguard and paramedics – who do a “super job” – but with the location of the landing site.
Sumburgh coastguard helicopter pilot Martin Naylor told members of the committee that crews do not take the decision of where to land lightly and that they attempt to minimise noise on site.
“For us it’s deeply important…to give the casualty the best possible means of survival,” he added.
Naylor dismissed suggestion from Leask that people who walk off the helicopter are not in serious danger, saying people’s medical condition can have the potential to develop quickly into something more life-threatening.
Councillor Davie Sandison questioned if there was any other work that could be done in finding an alternative landing site, but ambulance chief Peter Smith said they have gone “round and round Lerwick” without finding a better solution.
A report from planners presented at Tuesday’s meeting stressed that a balance had to be made “between a short term adverse impact on nearby residents and the long term benefits to those requiring emergency medical treatment of having such a facility in close proximity to a medical facility”, and it recommended the proposal was approved.
Bell described the helicopter as a “vital asset” for the community before moving the recommendation with the continued condition that the site is only used in emergencies.
Speaking after the meeting, council convener Bell said he was pleased with the outcome of the planning committee.
“There were concerns raised three years ago when the helipad had to be moved because of the new school, and on that occasion I moved that we grant it on a temporary basis, that we monitor the noise made by flights in and out, and a condition was added added that it was for emergency use only,” he said.
“It’s quite clear that the number of flights are reduced to a minimum. We heard today 1.6 a month, so even rounding that up, it’s a couple of movements in and out a month. And that’s fairly minimal. The majority of aircraft movements are either to Sumburgh or to Tingwall.”
Bell said he sympathised with concerns of residents, but said the pros outweighed the cons.
“I live in Lerwick as well – I hear the helicopter going over my house,” he said.
“I know the noise that it makes. But as a planning committee, we have to balance that against the overall benefit to the islands.”
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