A man was airlifted to hospital today after he was injured in an incident at the ESB’s Moneypoint power station in West Clare.
The man, a mechanical contractor in his 50s, is understood to have sustained serious leg injuries in an accident involving a forklift.
National Ambulance Service paramedics attended the scene and treated the injured man. It was decided that the casualty should be flown to the nearest suitable hospital so an air ambulance was requested.
The HSE’s Emergency Aeromedical Service (EAS) tasked the Cork-based, charity-funded Irish Community Air Ambulance (ICAA) helicopter to respond to the incident. The helicopter landed in a GAA field near Kilrush and the injured man was transported by road to meet the aircraft.
The man was then airlifted to University Hospital Limerick for treatment. The flight took less than 15 minutes while the 80 kilometre journey by road would have taken over an hour. The man is being treated for crush injuries.
A spokesperson for the ESB said: “We can confirm that there was an incident this morning at Moneypoint Power Station where a contractor, working on behalf of ESB, was injured.
“After receiving medical treatment from an ambulance crew on-site, the individual was transferred to University Hospital Limerick. Our thoughts are with him and his family at this time.”