Life After Pedro?
ACT continues to ask about ‘Life After Pedro.’
Unless an 11th hour miracle occurs, Pedro’s last flight is Friday, September 25. That’s when the U.S. Marine Corps shuts down operations of the helicopter fleet, now based at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point.
Who will take up the Search and Rescue (SAR) responsibilities in eastern North Carolina?
Credit the Allies for Cherry Point’s Tomorrow (ACT) for asking the million dollar questions.
The U.S. Coast Guard is expected to step in to fill the void…but specific details are yet to be announced…and the clock is ticking.
For several months now, ACT has repeatedly queried the U.S. Congress and State of North Carolina officials, because the public needs and deserves to know.
What will “Life After Pedro” mean to eastern North Carolina? The uncertainty is disconcerting.
At the state level, credit the efforts of Senator Norman Sanderson, for he has helped convene meetings in Raleigh with the North Carolina National Guard and the North Carolina Highway Patrol to assess alternatives to cover SAR without Pedro. The Coast Guard has been invited to the table for these discussions…and needs to participate.
ACT’s efforts to serve as a catalyst for resolution have also been endorsed by Rep. Pat McElraft.
Until this issue is resolved, the lives of downed Marine pilots, boaters and fishermen in distress and other accident victims who are not rescued and/or treated within the “golden hour” are imperiled.
In emergency medicine, the “golden hour” refers to the generally accepted “amount of time following traumatic injury during which there is the highest likelihood that prompt medical treatment will prevent death.”
The term refers to the core principle of the importance of rapid intervention in trauma cases.
– Mike Wagoner. Chamber President