Allegations of ongoing rift between the Sheriff and Fire departments over combined county aviation unit being brought to the forefront following two recent deaths.
In one incident an injured hiker died while awaiting helicopter rescue which was delayed 40-minutes due "communication failure” and in the second case a wrongly equipped helicopter was dispatched for a water rescue.
Santa Barbara County consolidated their air fleets under joint command to save money by cross training crews and sharing maintenance cost this fiscal year.
However it seems things have not gone as smooth as hoped for with employees now publicly voicing concerns about lack of training, safety issues, and unresponsive management.
Stories:
Safety, Reliability of County Fire Department Helicopters Challenged After Hiker’s Death
and
Letter: Sheriff's Dept. & County Fire Feuding Over Helicopter Control | KEYT.com - News, Weather, Sports for Santa Barbara, Santa Maria, San Luis Obispo, Ventura, Oxnard | Local
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In one incident an injured hiker died while awaiting helicopter rescue which was delayed 40-minutes due "communication failure” and in the second case a wrongly equipped helicopter was dispatched for a water rescue.
Santa Barbara County consolidated their air fleets under joint command to save money by cross training crews and sharing maintenance cost this fiscal year.
However it seems things have not gone as smooth as hoped for with employees now publicly voicing concerns about lack of training, safety issues, and unresponsive management.
Stories:
Safety, Reliability of County Fire Department Helicopters Challenged After Hiker’s Death
and
Letter: Sheriff's Dept. & County Fire Feuding Over Helicopter Control | KEYT.com - News, Weather, Sports for Santa Barbara, Santa Maria, San Luis Obispo, Ventura, Oxnard | Local
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