Firefighter’s marathon challenge in support of Air Ambulance NI

A DUNGANNON firefighter has registered to run this year’s Belfast City Marathon in his full kit to raise vital funds and awareness for Air Ambulance NI.

Eamonn Sheehan, a local business owner and on-call firefighter in his hometown, has laced his trainers once again after a long break from running.

When deciding to register for the marathon for Air Ambulance NI, Eamonn challenged himself to complete the whole marathon wearing his full firefighting PPE and breathing apparatus equipment, weighing a staggering 20kgs!

Eamonn said, “Air Ambulance NI provides such a valuable service to the people of Northern Ireland and as the NI Fire and Rescue Service work with the HEMS team at the scene of an incident, I understand how important this life-saving service is to the people of Northern Ireland and wanted to show my appreciation.

I’ve given myself a huge challenge in this running event wearing my full PPE equipment! I’m hoping to raise as much money for the charity as possible. My wife and children will all be there on the day to cheer me all the way to the finish line.

“With just 14 weeks until race day, I would encourage anyone thinking about taking on this challenge, to get themselves registered, start training and join me and many others, on Sunday, April 30 to raise funds for this life-saving service.”

Grace Williams, area fundraising manager for the Air Ambulance NI charity, said, “We are so inspired by Eamonn’s fundraising efforts and we are humbled he has decided to support the wonderful work of Air Ambulance NI in this way.

“As a service we rely heavily on charitable donations to keep the medical team in the air, delivering critical care to patients who have suffered trauma throughout Northern Ireland- without this type of support, the team simply couldn’t fly.

“I want to take this opportunity to personally thank Eamonn, wish him all the best of luck with his training and I look forward to cheering him over the finish line.”

The charity Air Ambulance Northern Ireland, in partnership with the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, provides the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) for Northern Ireland. The service brings urgent medical assistance to anywhere in the province, operating seven days a week for 12 hours per day. It can get to anywhere in the North in around 25 minutes. From inception in July 2017 to December 2022, the medical crew had been tasked over 3,350 times.

The HEMS team attend patients who are seriously ill or injured, bringing emergency pre-hospital care direct to the casualty with the aim of saving lives, brains and limbs.

Air Ambulance NI aspires to raise £2 million each year to maintain and sustain this service so support is crucial.

You can also support Eamon by making a donation via Fundraising Page of Eamonn Sheehan NIFRS (eventmaster.ie).

Further information is also available from Air Ambulance NI www.airambulanceni.org/upcoming-events/belfast-city-marathon/, by calling the charity on 028 92622677 or emailing belfastmarathon@airambulanceni.org.