EagleMed - celebrating over 30 years of service

On July 22nd, 2010 at approximately 8:00 pm, tragedy struck the EagleMed family. It is with an extreme heavy heart and great deal of sorrow we confirm that a fatal accident occurred involving our Oklahoma City based A-Star 350 helicopter and crew. The specific events and circumstances surrounding this terrible tragedy are still uncertain; however, it has been confirmed that two of our beloved family members have lost their lives in the accident.

The pilot and one member of the medical team were both confirmed fatalities at the scene of the accident. Al Harrison, a highly trained and experienced rotor wing pilot, had been employed with EagleMed for nearly ten years. Nurse Ryan Duke had joined the EagleMed medical team in Oklahoma City less than a year ago. Al and Ryan lost their lives doing something they loved, and their loss is a tragic one felt throughout EagleMed and the air medical community. The second member of the medical team, Nurse/Paramedic Michael Eccard, was transported to OU Medical Center for treatment of injuries he sustained. No patient was on board the aircraft at the time of the accident.

EagleMed, the 2000 recipient of an AAMS Safety Award, has a history of dedication to the safety of both patients and staff. That is what makes this fatal accident an even more heart wrenching event. This incident is receiving full review by the NTSB, FAA and other governmental agencies. EagleMed is and will continue to work with investigators in an effort to determine the cause of this horrible accident.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of Al, Ryan and Michael. More information will be provided as available.

In response to the overwhelming support from the community, EagleMed has established a fund at Commerce Bank where donations can be made on behalf of our beloved family and crew members of EagleMed 7. Please make contributions to:

EagleMed is committed to the safety of our crew and patients. As part of our ongoing effort in safety and education a video about The Hazards of Helicopter Shopping has been provided.

EagleMed is a privately owned and operated critical care transport service that has been in business since the transport of our first patient on September 1, 1981. We offer services to the entire state of Kansas with six Beechcraft King Air fixed wing aircraft and twelve Eurocopter A-Star AS350 rotor wing aircraft EagleMed has bases in Hays, Chanute, Dodge City, Garden City, Goodland, Pittsburg and Wichita, Kansas, Ardmore, Hugo, Oklahoma City, Stillwater, and Tahlequah Oklahoma, and Joplin, Missouri.

EagleMed is proud to be accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Services (CAMTS) since the year 2000. CAMTS is a voluntary process that verifies adherence to standards that are dedicated to improving the quality of patient care and safety of the transport environment for services providing rotorwing, fixed wing and ground transport systems.

All aircraft are completely configured for mission critical transports. We are equipped with heart monitors that have the capabilities for monitoring standard heart tracings as well as 12-Lead diagnosing biphasic defibrillation, pacing, ETCO2, and pulse oximetry. Other transport equipment includes: transport ventilators, 3 channel infusion pumps and a medical loading system. This equipment truly makes EagleMed a "Flying ICU".

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