Major Injury Crash Reported After Woman With Two Children Crash off Hwy 101 South of Hopland
At about 2:48 p.m., a full-size Chevy pickup went down the embankment approximately 100 feet off southbound Hwy 101 between Cloverdale and Hopland. A mother and two children were reportedly aboard. The Incident Commander told dispatch to order an air ambulance, however, all declined due to inclement weather.
The IC then ordered two ground ambulances and told dispatch there were major injuries.
The pickup reportedly also has major damage.
Please remember that this story is unfolding. Information is being reported as we gather it. However, some of the information coming from witnesses and initial official reports could be wrong. We will do our best to get the facts but, in the case that something is inaccurate, we will update with correct information as soon as we can.
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Well, Santa Rosa is not that far for a ground ambulance.
Hmmm… not sure about air ambulance any more.
I know right? How did that conversation go?
911 operator: “I need an air ambulance stat! A woman and 2 little ones need emergency help or they will perish!”
Helicopter company: “um , sorry, uh it’s raining cats and dogs and I just got a perm. Also they don’t have insurance. Try calling Jimbobs helicopter service they may come out”
Wind was probably the reason they won’t fly.
Hey. We don’t need nurses, paramedics, and pilots going down too. They know better than we do what is safe.
As opposed to the Coast Guard and CalFire ?
Coast guard and Cal Fire both have aircraft built to fly in more adverse conditions and typically the pilots are also more confident to fly in those environments, but it still doesn’t make them invincible to unsafe conditions, and they aren’t always available.
Gotta say I’ve seen REACH, and CalStar pilots land in crazy tight spots at night, locate and rescue injured hikers on their own with out ground support, and dozens of “routine” remote medivacs. So just saying, the Air Ambulance pilots, and nurses, the CalFire pilots and crews, the ‘Coasties: all the best of the best!
Correct
Not really. CalFire is pretty much daytime, good weather limited. For the most part, they can really only do an evacuation from a remote area to an ambulance. They don’t fly as an Air Ambulance like REACH, or CalStar, with Advanced Life Support drugs and equipment, and training. Perhaps the newer Firehawks might be able to fly in worse weather, but I think there’s some kind of Air Worthiness Directive holding up the roll out.
Bottom line is, you get yourself in your own emergency. Nobody is obligated to risk their life for you. Indeed it would complicate one emergency if you added a helicopter crash.
It’s sad they wrecked, but a car only does what the operator tells it to do. Slow down and keep your eyes on the road.
True. I remember years ago a rescue helicopter going down in local Mendocino County mountains somewhere, can’t remember all the details. Everyone on board perished if I remember correctly.
If conditions are not safe to fly in and the aircraft goes down, you now have additional patients or more likely multiple fatalities. That being said it is very frustrating that helicopters can’t be a magic tool to whisk away every critical patient to the hospital.
It has been pretty calm in Santa Rosa today. It may be different where the team was being dispatched from. They are a brave group, but need to put everyone’s safety first.
poor kids.
I passed this accident heading south and could see the vehicle at the bottom of the embankment. Quite shocking as the road was dry and no significant wind. Of course, the curves there can be deceiving. The ambulance also passed me heading to the scene. The firefighters were laying rope. I would not presume to know why air ambulance could not fly. My brother is a flight instructor at Embry Riddle and safety is always first.
I hope the occupants are alive.
Kim, Any update?