A new helipad is officially open for landing at Stevenson Memorial Hospital (SMH) in Alliston. Member of Provincial Parliament for Simcoe-Grey, Brian Saunderson and hospital president and CEO Deepak Sharma were among the dignitaries on hand for the ribbon cutting ceremony on Thursday. SMH’s helipad is the first major component of the hospital’s redevelopment project, according to officials. “So the hospital has had a helipad for a number of years,” Sharma told CTV News. “What we’ve done is we’ve relocated it and we’ve made it safer,” Sharma said. “It allows two flight paths into the hospital and away from the hospital that speeds up the transfers and it makes the transfer safer for both the patients, the staff as well as the flight crews,” he said. “It will provide a much safer environment for the crews when we land and when we take off because it’s heated,” said Greg Hulme, ORNGE Director of Flight Operations. “It’s got a large approach angle, so that means wherever the prevailing winds are coming from, we should be able to get into the helipad without problem and it’s away from critical structures like the old helipad used to have issues with,” Hulme added. In January, the hospital announced a contractor had been chosen for the $174 million redevelopment that is expected to be completed by late 2028.
