KENNEWICK, Wash. – The air medical transportation organization Life Flight trained with Benton County Fire District 1 Wednesday night, learning about the service and practicing with the crew.
Taking place in the Rancho Reata area of Kennewick, BCFD1 and Life Flight met at Station 140, where Life Flight held both a class and demonstration with their helicopter.
The class lasted around an hour and covered subjects like classes of vehicles, how to safely transport a patient and how to chose a landing place. After the hour, BCFD1 went outside to watch as the Life Flight helicopter touched down on the grass near the station.
From 7:30 p.m. onward, BCFD1 met with the pilot and crew aboard the helicopter and received hands on experience with transporting patients on gurneys, as well as getting personal looks inside the cockpit.
Jenna Roberts, the Public Information Officer for BCFD1, said that these types of trainings help firefighters when they find themselves in remote areas.
“We have a lot of calls that can tend to be out of the way… where it’s going to take a while and be a kind of bumpy ride for a patient who may have been involved in a hunting accident or a vehicle crash,” said Roberts. “Working with Life Flight means that we’ll be able to provide better service to our customers.”
Life Flight is a medical transport organization that operates out of Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana. Across its coverage zone, Life Flight has 29 bases of operation, with this crew operating from Richland.
Natalie Hannah, the Public Relations Manager at Life Flight Network, says that the work they do is crucial to the medical transportation industry.
“You know, this is a 24/7, 365 operation,” said Hannah. “There are no holidays for our on-duty crews. You know, it doesn’t matter what’s going on… we are ready and available to answer the call when when someone’s in need.”
A NonStop Local viewer, Marc Van Gorden, witnessed Life Flight in person this week. On Wednesday morning, his wife, who was at a hospital in Hermiston, required more medical treatment when doctors suggested to make the call.
Van Gorden said that within 30 minutes, Life Flight was there and ready to transport her.
“They did their jobs… [they were] very, very caring… understanding,” said Van Gorde. “They even stopped mid-stride so I could kiss Sharon goodbye before she took off.”
Van Gorden said that his wife made it to her destination and is currently doing well and receiving medical care.
For more information on Life Flight, visit its website, www.lifeflight.org. To learn more information about BCFD1, visit its website, www.bentonone.org.
