MORE lives will be saved by Kent air ambulance after a record £50,845 was raised.

The millennium prize draw, organised by the Kent Air Ambulance Trust (KAAT), had prizes ranging from a Honda hatchback to sweatshirts.

KAAT chief executive Kate Chivers said: “We are delighted by the response and £10,000 a month has been received from the draw since its October launch.”

The air ambulance is entirely supported by voluntary contributions and costs £750,000 to run each year.

The money raised will cover most of the ambulance's costs for a month, if it spends five days in service.

The trust says the need for an air ambulance in Kent is high because there are isolated parts of the county which are hard to reach, and road networks leading to London which get blocked up.

On average the air ambulance arrives at the scene of an accident within 7.5 minutes, and can get the victim back to hospital within 5.5 minutes.

This means seriously injured people can receive life-saving treatment within the first hour of an accident what doctors call “the golden hour”.

To donate money or find out more about the KAAT, call 01622 833833.