Med Flight crashes, kills 3 exceptional people

[TJZ]

It has taken me some time to post this but I just want to share with as many as possible how much these 3 gave and what a loss to all of Wisconsin it is that they are gone.

I have completed my EMT-B with Mark Coyne as my instructor and he was incredible. He died 2 days before our NREMT practical exam. We went on as planned and I - despite crying while splinting- rocked that test. He told us the last day that we saw him to have fun with it because if he had let us get to his point we knew it. He was right. All that I need do now is pass that computerized exam on Saturday.

Thank you Mark for the start you gave me, I just wish I could have you as my paramedic instructor.

I guess I could also be glad that I got my first CISD out of the way.

Below is the newspaper article.

UW Med Flight crew dies in crash

Tamira Madsen and Steve Elbow

Three people died late Saturday night as a UW Med Flight helicopter crashed near La Crosse, UW Hospital officials confirmed, prompting a temporary shutdown of the Med Flight program.

Dr. Darren Bean, nurse Mark Coyne and pilot Steve Lipperer were killed in the crash.

Bean, who joined UW Hospitals as a Med Flight surgeon in 2002, was the Madison Fire Department's medical director.

"It's just terrible. It's such a loss for us," said Madison Fire Chief Debra Amesqua, who learned of the helicopter's disappearance at about 4 a.m. "He was just such an emotional and energetic powerhouse, and it was just so infectious."

The helicopter departed at about 10:30 p.m. for Madison after dropping off a patient to be admitted to Gundersen Lutheran Hospital in La Crosse. Med Flight officials were not successful in attempts to contact the pilot through radio communications, and the initial search began 30 minutes later.

In a statement, UW Hospital officials said, "the aircraft may have flown into a hill and/or struck some trees."

Mark Hanson, the director of UW's Med Flight program, said the area was wooded.

This is the first crash for the program in its 22 years of operation.

In the statement, hospital officials said, "Following standard protocol, the second Med Flight helicopter has been taken out of service."

They wouldn't comment on the cause of the crash, although they said no radio communication was received after the helipcoter took off.

A large-scale search effort was initiated 11 p.m. Saturday, but the search was hampered because of weather conditions, precluding an air search. The search was conducted by foot and road vehicle.

The crash site was discovered by firefighters on foot at about 8:40 a.m. four miles east of the La Crosse Airport, near Keil Coulee Road in the town of Medary.

The FAA is investigating the crash. Hanson said the Med Flight program would be grounded pending FAA clearance.

UW's medical helicopters were operated by CJ Systems Aviation Group of Pittsburgh, Penn., until October of last year, when it was bought out by Air Methods Corp. of Denver, the world's largest air ambulance operator, according to the company's web site. No one at the company was available for comment today.

In 2005 UW Med Flight program celebrated its 20th year in service, and currently has 22 doctors and 10 nurses assigned to its staff. The downed helicopter is one of two the program uses.

Last year it adopted a new Eurocopter EC 135 air rescue aircraft, leased from Air Methods, to replace two Italian models that had been used for a decade. At the time of its 20th anniversary, the program had transported more than 20,000 patients, according to published new accounts from the time.

Bean, the Madison Fire Department's medical director since January of 2007, leaves a big hole at the Fire Department, spokeswoman Lori Wirth said.

"He was so full of life, it's really, really difficult to wrap your head around the fact that he's gone," she said.

"He did so much. It was unbelievable," she said. "He taught, he was an ER doctor, he worked for us, and he was a Med Flight surgeon."

She described him as a "very involved father" to his two young children, a boy and a girl.

Coyne had been a nurse for over 20 years, while Lipperer, an employee of Air Methods, had 10 years of experience working as a pilot.

Gov. Jim Doyle today issued a statement saying: "Dr. Darren Bean, Mark Coyne and Steve Lipperer dedicated themselves to rescuing people who faced the longest odds, and we owe them tremendous gratitude for their extraordinary service and dedication. I pray for them, their families and all the others who love them."

Meanwhile, Hospital Chief Executive Officer Donna Katen-Bahensky said officials will bring in social workers to help the survivors' families and members of the hospital staff deal with the tragedy.

"I think it goes without saying that UW Health is very much like a family," Katen-Bahensky said. "The staff are very much connected to each other and this is a tremendous loss to our staff, but also to the families and friends of those who died.

"We're going to take good care of each other."

[Dustdevil]

Z, I am very, very sorry for your loss, and the loss to the EMS community as a whole. It sounds like Mark was truly a gift to those who he taught, and I am happy that he was there for you and left you with such positive inspiration to carry with you into the profession. His message will stay with you for your entire career and will serve you well as a reminder of what is really important, and as a model for what you can aspire to be. I hope that someday you will be teaching EMTs yourself and that you can pass his legacy on to them.

Thanks, Mark. And thanks to Darren Bean and Steve Lipperer. You will all be missed.

[DwayneEMTP]

Prayers for these fine people, and those that loved them from the Womacks in CO...

Dwayne

[steph1030]

thoughts, prayers & deepest sympathies for the families of the lost for the lost may they rest in peace

[firedoc5]

Sorry to hear about it. It's always tough to lose those who have taught and mentored us. Keep being positive and on track. I'm sure that's what Mark would like it.

God speed to all three.

[Asysin2leads]

TJZ, you have my deepest sympathies. I serious suggest taking some time away from EMS for a little bit. I know you have been working hard and don't want to let anyone down, this is really a personal tragedy for you and you should really think about taking some time off at this point. This is my suggestion based on experiences I've had with other people in similar situations, you don't want to start equating working EMS with losing people you know.

[TJZ]

Thank you everyone for the condolences.

Asys I would agree with you but I do not have a connection to working in EMS and losing people. I was started on the acceptance of loss a very long time before EMS and actually deal with it shockingly well. Some say I am a bit warped, possibility because I started as a custodian at UW hospital in the OR at 16 and stayed until I was 24. At least I have been exposed to things and know how I handle them. The hysterical parents are the hardest for me, I would bet that is true of most people.

The way of the world as arranged for my break either way though since I have to wait for my NREMT CBT appointment, then wait for my letter in the mail, then wait for my license, then find a job.

Mark's death is a sad thing for me since I was really hoping to have him as my paramedic instructor but he has done more for me than I ever could have asked. Even before the class, when he just came in with the helicopter as I worked to get the room ready for the trauma patient he was bringing. It saddens me that he is gone but there are so many that they all touched, they have impacted more lives than many people could ever hope.

He said flat out in class that he did not want to become a feeble old man and that he would go fast if given the choice. It is my opinion that he got much of what he wanted out of life

[kjohnson55]

Sorry for you loss and keep your head held high. Its always hurts to loss someone in the EMS community. My prayers are with you and the family.

[unknown]

This opens up hurts that you would think had healed, how easy to Identify with this.

I am very sorry to hear of your loss. My company lost three stellar flight crew members in December, just six short months ago. They where on a search mission to find a missing hunter, they found the lost man, and where hovering, flying in the general area so the ground rescuers could locate him. It was a shock and a big loss, the first deaths our company experienced. It is hard. But you will heal with time. Feel free to rant or vent. Send me a PM if you would like too.

It's hard to belive six months have passed and now our industry looses 3 more stellar crew members........

RIP, you will be missed my many....

[mrmeaner]

My new co-workers all seemed to know these guys as local pillars for EMS and it's advancement. I wish I had a chance to meet them. My condolences to those who knew them.