SPECIAL TO THE PVT This Mercy Air Bell 222 helicopter, flown by Gary Griffith, as well as Mercy Air's Bell 412 model, are among the fastest air medical helicopters in the world, with a maximum speed of 172 mph. Both twin-engine aircrafts are flown in Southern Nevada because of their capacity to handle the desert heat. Advertisement

A Bell 222 helicopter, flown by Mercy Air, landed behind the Valley Electric Association facility on Highway 372 Feb. 19, bringing Mercy Air personnel to conduct emergency training.

To educate their employees on emergency pickup and transport, VEA contacted Nye County Emergency Services for information.

In response to their concerns, Emergency Services arranged for Mercy Air's onboard flight team of Shelly Comers, critical care flight nurse, Jamie Lewis, in-flight paramedic and pilot Gary Griffith to train VEA personnel.

VEA employees could be a hundred miles from Pahrump working on power lines. What if medical assistance was needed in a remote area? VEA wanted to know fast an employee could be located and transported to a medical facility.

Items covered during the training included acquainting VEA employees with the flight team and their qualifications, familiarizing employees with the equipment on board the aircraft and the communications procedures used while en route to a medical facility.

On board the helicopter, the flight crew kept communications short and concise, passing along vital information such as patient statistics and estimated time of arrival.

Mercy Air can fly within a 200-mile radius and acquiring critical information which helps the pilot locate the victim is crucial.

The pilot must know how far the patient is from a known point and whether or not there are power lines in the immediate vicinity. Patient vital signs are also needed, including his or her immediate condition, and of course the patient's weight is necessary.

The Mercy Air helicopters have a minimum space requirement of 100-by-100 feet. to safely land and extract a patient. Once the patient is moved into the helicopter, the flight team takes over.

In addition to the pilot, each flight team includes a critical care flight nurse and a flight paramedic or emergency physician.

Among the organizations trained in procedures and landing zone requirements and authorized to contact Mercy Air directly are paramedics, emergency medical technicians, law enforcement and public service agencies, doctors, nurses and hospital personnel.

If a situation necessitates emergency transportation, a request by an authorized organization can put Mercy Air on standby. There is no charge to the requesting party for placing the call, and standby can save precious minutes.

VEA has a current work safety record of 360,383 hours without a lost-time accident and was recognized by the Association of Electric Power Utilities in the Northwest for its outstanding record.

(Reporter Gina B. Good contributed to this report.)