LOCALadk
Spring 2015 LOCALadk Magazine 47
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final decision about flying from point A to point B. The benefit of the rescue must outweigh the risk
of the flight. "The most challenging part is dealing with the things we have no control of such as the
environmental factors. The weather, winds, visibility, turbulence keeps you on your toes," Hermanson
comments. "When you take off from Saranac Lake, the weather here may be completely different from
the weather where you're doing the hoist. You can make your best estimate of the weather en route, but
until you get there and see the clouds and feel the winds, it's only estimation."
In the arena of helicopter rescue missions, a landing zone is ideal. However, that's not always an option in
the Adirondack backcountry, hence the importance of hoist training and having a plan B. For seven hours,
DEC and Life Flight trainees take turns loading the litter with sandbags (in a rescue scenario, the litter is
the most dangerous option because it requires the longest hover time). Trainees strap themselves into
the harness and practice being lifted. The blades of the hovering helicopter churn and kick up clouds of
