ST. Lucie County Fla--Dept Gets New Rescue Chopper

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The Stuart News

County to pick up new rescue copter
By staff report
March 27, 2003

St. Lucie County Fire District and Sheriff's Office officials plan to fly today to Philadelphia to pick up the county's new rescue helicopter, Fire Chief Jay Sizemore said Wednesday.

Agusta Aerospace Co. built the aircraft to replace a $2.4 million Agusta A119 Koala that crashed during a June 12 training mission in Okeechobee.

Sizemore, sheriff's Chief Deputy Garry Wilson and a fire district mechanic will inspect the helicopter, then fire district pilot Jimmy Adams and one of Agusta's pilots will fly it back to Fort Pierce, Sizemore said.

A National Transportation Safety Board report released this week indicated a manufacturing error weakened the metal of the tail rotor blade of the original helicopter, contributing to the June 12 accident. A final report is expected in coming weeks.

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St. Lucie paramedics relish return to the sky


By Will Vash, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, April 9, 2003

FORT PIERCE -- St. Lucie County paramedics expect be back in the sky following a 10-month drought when a new $2.4 million state-of-the art medical evacuation helicopter lifts off this weekend.

The Agusta A119 Koala, which was showcased Tuesday, replaces an earlier model that crashed last June during a training flight in Okeechobee, about three weeks after it went into service.

Since the crash, St. Lucie County has used helicopters from Martin County or Holmes Regional Medical Center in Melbourne when serious injuries required a quick flight to a hospital.

But that is expected to end within days, when a St. Lucie deputy and paramedic respond to their first emergency call in the new aircraft, officials said.

"Based on our population growth, we saw the need for this type of an airship a while ago," said St. Lucie County Sheriff Ken Mascara. "It was a major disappointment when that first one went down. We're happy to have it back."

Agusta Aerospace agreed to replace the downed helicopter after a microscopic metal defect in the tail rotor was blamed for the June 12 crash. The company even included some new features to make life easier for the emergency flight team.

Among them are a cockpit compatible with the use of night vision goggles, equipment to provide constantly updated weather information, an additional landing light and better lighting in the patient's compartment, a second transponder so radar can track the helicopter if the first one fails and a special stretcher-like device to aid in the movement of patients.

Unlike rides in the other emergency helicopters, St. Lucie's service will be free to patients flown to local hospitals.

St. Lucie County paramedic Jennifer Chambers, 28, was on the helicopter that crashed last year, but that didn't stop her from stepping aboard the new machine.

"There's a little apprehension, but I've always known I wanted to fly," Chambers said. "This is an excellent aircraft."

Deputy pilot George Dean, 48, who also survived the 2002 crash, said he was ready to get back into the cockpit once again.

"You're helping people that really need it," Dean said of piloting an ambulance on air. "After it's over, you really feel good."

will_vash@pbpost.com