Pahrump helicopter base up and running

Erica D. Johnson

Monday, Dec. 2, 2002 | 10:57 a.m.

With a restaffing of a helicopter base in Pahrump, the Las Vegas Valley is expected to have more coverage from air ambulances to quickly respond to life-threatening injuries.

Mercy Air Service on Sunday reopened its 24-hour emergency helicopter base at the Pahrump Medical Center, adding a helicopter there and freeing up the two helicopters that had been used for both the Pahrump area and the Las Vegas Valley.

"That's the big plus," base manager Nancy Newell said. "One helicopter will be dedicated to Pahrump and the two shifts in Las Vegas can focus on what's going on in Las Vegas. This will be a blessing for everyone."

The additional helicopter will make the Las Vegas Valley safer because it is less likely all available helicopters will be busy at the same time, Las Vegas Fire and Rescue spokesman Tim Szymanski said.

"The more you have of anything is always better," he said. "It's just like having more fire trucks or more police. Having more available makes the community safer."

The third Mercy helicopter for the area will benefit the entire community, Clark County Fire Department spokesman Bob Leinbach said.

"It helps because a helicopter will be closer (to emergencies in Pahrump) or it will be more likely that another helicopter is available for an emergency," he said.

The Pahrump base had been closed since Sept. 7, when its helicopter crashed, killing the three-person crew on board and destroying the aircraft.

Mercy Business Development Coordinator Missy Greenlee said the company didn't have the staff or an additional helicopter to equip the Pahrump base immediately after the crash. Getting the replacement nurses and paramedics certified to work in Southern Nevada took about two months, she said.

Mercy officials expect the reopening to put an end to delays in Pahrump, where it took about 30 minutes from the time a call was placed until a helicopter arrived on the scene.

With no hospitals in Pahrump, patients were then transported more than 70 miles to University Medical Center's Trauma Center or other Las Vegas hospitals.

In emergency situations 30 minutes can mean the difference between life or death, Bob Valdez, Mercy's managing director, said.

The treatment a patient receives during the first 60 minutes after a traumatic injury -- called the "golden hour" by emergency workers -- is crucial.

"Time is of the essence," Valdez said. "The quicker we can get definitive care to patients and transfer patients to the closest center, you increase their survival ability. It became evident that we needed to get a community resource back here as soon as possible to shorten the response time."

Even with the delays, the helicopters were still quicker than relying on emergency ground crews, Valdez said. They take about an hour to drive from Pahrump to Las Vegas.

In critical situations, Pahrump ground crews would begin driving patients into Las Vegas, where they would be met by a helicopter in between, Valdez said.

He said he was not aware of any incidents in which a helicopter's delay time hurt a patient.

Though Pahrump and Las Vegas will now have their own helicopters, the cities will still share helicopters in the event of multi-person accidents.

The two Las Vegas bases, located at the North Las Vegas Airport and Action Helicopters, 13000 S. Las Vegas Blvd., will also serve areas such as Jean and St. George, Utah, Valdez said.

The Pahrump base will also serve areas such as Death Valley and Baker.

Twelve additional Mercy helicopters that serve Southern California can be can also be flown in if necessary, Valdez said.

The Pahrump base has a staff of nine on call 24 hours a day. Pilots work 12-hour shifts while nurses and medics work 24-hour shifts.

Mercy officials are also revamping the base by painting the building's exterior and adding an additional trailer, which will serve as a rest area for overnight flight crews.

In the meantime, Valdez said, Pahrump residents will sleep a little easier knowing they once again have an emergency helicopter close by should they need it.

"It adds a sense of comfort knowing that there is a helicopter available to provide advanced skills and assist local fire divisions," he said. "We need the community to be comfortable knowing they have that asset in their community."

Sun reporter

Dan Kulin contributed to this story.