OCSD And OCFA Helicopter Debacle: Search-And-Rescue Roles Hang Midair

LAKE FOREST, CA — It's a no-fly zone between Orange County Sheriff's Department and Orange County Fire Authority helicopters for search-and-rescue operations, officials said. On Tuesday, OCSD Sheriff Sandra Hutchens told the Orange County Board of Supervisors that she has canceled an agreement with the Orange County Fire Authority on search-and-rescue operations.

"Both (OCFA) Chief (Jeff) Bowman and I are in total agreement that the most important thing in the county is to provide those resources to someone on the ground as safely and quickly as necessary," Hutchens said.

However, both sheriff and firefighters have had recent issues over how to respond to emergencies from the air.

While the Orange County Sheriff's Department is relying on the speed of its new aircraft, the Orange County Fire Authority is leaning on its expertise in emergency situations that sometimes do not require airlifting injured parties but rather involve ground transport, according to OCFA Battalion Chief Dave Spencer.

According to Hutchens, the sheriff has a helicopter in the air for most of the day and typically can respond to an emergency faster than the OCFA's helicopter, which lifts off only when summoned, according to reports.

In a recently released radio dialog between OCFA and OCSD pilots, there was concern regarding the vertical versus horizontal lift of a patient and whether or not properly trained paramedics were on scene during an emergency operation on two separate occasions. In the recorded incident, dispatch operators seemed perplexed as to why the OCSD DUKE helicopter was on scene when OCFA had been called.

All pilots claimed to be focused on proper and expedient patient care in both Orange and Laguna Beach incidents.

According to Spencer, the Orange County Fire Authority Bell 412 Helicopters are specifically designed aircraft that allow firefighters to execute the mission and be efficient, provide rescue and load patients into the chopper without any additional reconfiguration of the aircraft.

"We have a signed agreement with the Orange County Sheriff's Department," Spencer said. "Our position is that we want to work collaboratively with the sheriffs. If fighting a wildfire or brush fire, we would want our law partners to step up and provide support if needed."

On April 28, both OCFA and OCSD Duke Helicopters arrived on the scene of an incident where an intoxicated 17-year-old with non-life threatening injuries was pulled from a beach cove. The Orange County Register reported that a Laguna official declared that the sheriff’s pilot was creating “an unsafe air operation” by not answering direct orders and by possibly improperly airlifting the patient in a vertical rather than horizontal lift.

"OCFA's mission is to provide care and transport for the sick and injured, and we will continue to do that," Spencer said. "We use a risk matrix to decide whether or not we will use an aircraft. Ground resources vs. aircraft. We allow our ground resources to go in and make contact with a patient. We are here to work with our law partners, not here to dispute with them. We can certainly have disagreements but continue to work together."

Supervisor Todd Spitzer asked Hutchens about the status of the memorandum of understanding between the two agencies.

"At the end of the day, the public just wants to know services were rendered," Spitzer said.

Hutchens said her staff is working on a new agreement with the fire authority, as alluded to in her June 5 memo.

"It's a 60-day notice, but we are continuing to meet to establish protocols," Hutchens said. "The capability of air support has changed over time. With the Orange County Sheriff's Department our capabilities have increased."

The sheriff said her staff is looking at what other counties are doing to coordinate services between police and firefighters.

"I felt strongly we needed a new MOU, so there's no confusion as to how we should respond," Hutchens said.

According to a recent report by the Orange County Register, the OCSD has trained its helicopter crews to offer medical aid in addition to search and rescues, further blurring the lines between sheriff and fire helicopter roles.

“We are the primary rescue aircraft. They are the primary search aircraft,” Spencer told the Register. “(But) in our collaboration agreement, we can do either or they can, if need be.”

The incident in Laguna Beach on April 29 was a direct request for an OCFA helicopter, according to Spencer. “I don’t know why (sheriff's helicopters) responded in that incident," he said.

As for what happens next, Hutchens' memo released June 5 said that effective immediately, OCSD would resume search-and-rescue operations consistent with the current MOU, which states:

Search and rescue: OCSD and OCFA will share responsibilities of search and rescue.

Uninjured person(s): For incidents involving an uninjured person, OCSD will be primary for the search and rescue portion of the mission. OCFA will be notified based on incident needs for technical support (air resources, ground resources, technical rescue trucks).

Injured person(s): For incidents involving an injured person, OCSD will be primary for the search and OCFA will be primary for the rescue portion of the mission.

"Our concern is public safety, and we work well with all of our law partners," Spencer said. "The idea that we wouldn't is far from the truth."

City News Service contributed to this report.

OCSD photo