Two Seriously Injured in Chatham County; One Airlifted to Burn Center, Another Rushed to Trauma Unit

At approximately 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 20, 2025, Chatham Emergency Services (CES) responded to a 911 call involving two patients with serious injuries on Wilmington Island.

Due to the critical nature of the situation, the CES Paramedic District Chief alerted the LifeStar Medevac Helicopter while en route. Two Advanced Life Support ambulances and the CES Paramedic District Chief arrived at the scene within minutes and established a unified command with the Chatham County Fire Department.

While CES medics administered life-saving treatment, Chatham Fire prepared a landing zone at a nearby school. One patient was stabilized and transported under emergency conditions to the landing zone, where LifeStar airlifted the individual to the Burn Center at Doctor’s Hospital in Augusta, Georgia. The second patient was transported by ground ambulance to Memorial Health in Savannah, the region’s Level One Trauma Center, with a transport time of 16 minutes.

“This was an intense and urgent situation,” said Chief Chuck Kearns, CEO of Chatham Emergency Services. “Thanks to the skill and decisiveness of our EMS teams, our partners at Chatham Fire, and the LifeStar crew, both patients were quickly stabilized and sent to facilities best equipped to care for them.”

Chatham Emergency Services expressed support for the patients and their families and acknowledged the efforts of its 250 EMS practitioners during National EMS Week.