JSfirm Member Press: Air Evac Lifeteam’s Director of Safety Assists with Haiti Earthquake Aftermath

The earthquake that rocked Haiti Jan. 12 has proven to be a logistical challenge nightmare for rescue workers, particularly those in the air ambulance industry assisting relief efforts in the Caribbean nation. Dave Hardin, Director of Safety for Air Evac Lifeteam, spent eight days in the Dominican Republic at the Port-au-Prince Airport assisting AeroAmbulancia in its efforts to provide Helicopter EMS and resupply missions into Haiti. AeroAmbulancia, which is part of the Helidosa Aviation Group, is based in Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti. Hardin left the day after the earthquake at the urging of Colin Collins, advisor to Air Evac Lifeteam’s Board of Directors. Describing those eight days abroad as “immensely challenging”, Hardin worked alongside Helidosa to provide assistance guidance and logistical coordination for its HEMS and relief efforts. Even for an experienced professionals, HEMS safety director, coordinating crowded air space while safely moving patients, passengers and cargo into a country with such massive devastation proved to be a challenging undertaking. At one point, Hardin witnessed more than 50 airplanes and 25 helicopters on a single runway airport, all with the same laudable goal of providing assistance to some of the approximately three million people affected by the quake. With organizations and countries across the world sending humanitarian aid, including launching airplanes and helicopters for the recovery effort, there were no shortages of aircraft available to help. This, however, has presented its own set of unique challenges. “The airspace was just saturated, so eventually the Haitian government closed the airspace entirely around the Port-au-Prince Airport,” said Hardin. “But it was the way it was closed that was most interesting. The tower operator simply announced the airspace was closed and then turned off the radio, leaving dozens of aircraft uncontrolled and in close proximity.” Eventually, Hardin pointed out, a standardized schedule was put in place after the military re-opened the airspace. Fixed wing aircraft were all put on standard routes, helicopters were flying structured routing in to and out of the Port-au-Prince Airport, and safety measures such as load manifests and weight/balance calculations were enacted. “It didn’t take them long to assess, adapt, and smoothly bring the chaos under control,” said Hardin. “It was a real pleasure witnessing it for myself and working side-by-side with the Helidosa as a team of professionals.” Hardin pointed out the area has its own set of unique challenges for HEMS operations, including the lack of first responders to provide assistance on the ground, a dense population of 9.5 million in a country on an island only 232 miles long and 158 miles wide, and geographical terrain ranging from mountains to deserts, and sandy beaches to and dense forestation. Compounding flight difficulty was the inability to communicate with the pilot once crossing into Haiti; the power in the Caribbean nation was out, and traditional forms of long-distance communications were not available. Not to mention the danger inherent from such utter devastation, said Hardin. “It’s just not safe to move anything into Haiti on the ground, because ground convoys suspected of having food and water are being attacked,” said Hardin. “That’s what makes this so different from Hurricane Katrina in 2005, for instance. Everything has to be done through the air right now in Haiti. Because of the danger, we were forced to establish a series of five designated safe landing zones, and a curfew of nightfall was enacted by the government. And we travelled in flights of two or more so that if one aircraft went down, a communication relay could be established.” Hardin is quick to credit the professionals at Helidosa for their efforts, and indicated he had another week-long trip scheduled for the near future. to provide further assistance. He points out although some refugee camps have been established, and recovery efforts have become slightly more organized, the country of Haiti is in utter ruins. “This is a mass casualty disaster of epic proportions, and the recovery and relief efforts are going to take a long, long time,” said Hardin. About Air Evac Lifeteam Air Evac Lifeteam is an air ambulance service that provides emergency health care and rapid medical transport to rural communities throughout the central United States. The company currently operates 89 air ambulance bases in 14 states.