Just prior to Christmas I appealed to everyone to spare a thought for those emergency workers who were giving up their Christmas to keep the rest of us safe. Sadly, one of their number gave up so much more on Christmas Eve.
Seemingly as I typed those words, NSW Paramedic Mick Wilson was being winched into a valley only twenty miles from my home to assist a canyoner in trouble. The details of what went horribly wrong are now the subject of an ATSB investigation and as such, I won’t even attempt to postulate on any operational aspect of this tragedy. However, the passing of this selfless professional cannot just slip under my radar.
Mick Wilson was one of the highly trained paramedics that form S.C.A.T. or the ‘Special Casualty Access Team’. This unit was formed many years ago, back when I was in the NSW Ambulance Service prior to branching out and flying aeroplanes. In fact 2011 marked the 25th anniversary for SCAT. On top of the high level of clinical training already imposed on Intensive Care Paramedics, SCAT called for even more rigorous challenges to be both selected and qualified. Mick Wilson was one of these elite officers and to my understanding had been for some time.
I have good friends who have qualified for SCAT and they are not supermen or women, they are humble folk who love their job. But above all they are selfless. They mitigate against risk to the best of their ability in a very challenging environment and have a tremendous record of success. To the best of my knowledge, Mick Wilson is the first SCAT officer to pay the ultimate price in a workplace that only the best dare to tread. Even so, they step into this potentially dangerous world on a regular basis to help others and ask for nothing in return.
In an era where the words ‘legend’ and ‘hero’ are thrown about with little thought to the real meaning, Mick Wilson undoubtedly qualifies in the truest sense of the word. In fact, so do the countless, faceless individuals of the emergency services who are on call 24 hours per day for our safety and security. I spared a thought for these good folk as Christmas Eve fell, but after the loss of Mick Wilson, it is a thought I have found hard to shake.
My deepest sympathies go out to his wife and children in the wake of their loss. They can be rightfully proud, yet the void that is left by the passing of their husband and father is one I can only imagine. Rest in peace, Mick and to all the others who serve, please keep safe.
“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” John 15:13
Title Image. Paul Sadler. "Australian Aviation" magazine.
