Landing zone – Dangers abound during airlifts
Accident scenes can be a dangerous place long after the initial wreck as emergency crews face a number of potential threats aside from rubbernecking motorists and exploding fuel tanks.
With that in mind, North Warren Fire Department conducted a learning seminar with Air Evac, a national air evacuation company which serves this area with a base out of Manchester.
The seminar was to familiarize volunteer rescue workers with the way emergency airlifts are handled and the potential hazards at air lift scenes.
?A rotor blade can dip to as low as four feet,? said veteran pilot Scott Steiner of Air Evac, noting a helicopter?s rotor blade and the tail rotor can be lethal. ?They will decapitate you.?
Steiner said it is important to approach their aircraft from the front and only after a clear signal has been sent by the pilot.
Steiner stressed the importance of ground crews securing a scene for landing a medical helicopter in the field, noting a clear area of 100 feet by 100 feet is needed at night, and 80 feet by 80 feet during the day. The landing area is preferably a flat area clear of stumps and pits.
Steiner also pointed out utility wires are a major concern. While many can be spotted by the pilot, the smaller guy-wires are many times hard to see, and therefore firemen on the ground are asked to make sure the helicopter pilot is aware of them.
Steiner said he looks for areas where there is not access to the general public, advising firemen to secure all sides of a landing zone to ensure spectators do not wander in.
Along with rotors and the threats caused by guy-wires, Steiner pointed out the wind from the rotor of a landing helicopter can be a threat within the landing zone.
?Winds coming off the blades can reach almost 200 mph. That?s like a tornado force wind,? Steiner said. ?That could potentially throw something to injure someone or damage property within the landing zone.?
Steiner said Air Evac focuses its service on rural areas such as Warren County and is not in competition with Vanderbilt?s LifeFlight and Erlanger?s LifeForce. Air Evac is a membership-based company and anyone is welcome to subscribe.
Steiner encouraged emergency crews to put helicopters on standby at the earliest opportunity.
?We don?t mind turning around and going back if you decide you won?t need us. But by calling early, that gets us on our way and there quicker,? Steiner said, noting from their Coffee County airbase they can reach the northern most part of Warren County in less than 14 minutes.