PHOENIX — Phoenix will be without helicopter hoist rescue capabilities for several weeks during one of the hottest stretches of the year after the Phoenix Police Department sent its helicopter out of state for an extended maintenance overhaul.
The Phoenix Police Department's Firebird helicopter, which Phoenix Fire relies on for technical mountain rescues, has been taken out of service for what Fire Captain Rob McDade described as perhaps the longest maintenance absence the department has experienced.
The timing is significant. Phoenix is entering August, historically one of the most dangerous months for hikers on the city's mountain trails.
Rescues could take three times as long
McDade said the helicopter's hoist capability has been critical in cutting down rescue times, particularly for patients near the summit of a mountain who are critically injured.
"What the hoist helicopter has done for us is it cuts that 3-hour operation sometimes into 1 hour," McDade said.
Without it, rescues that previously took 30 minutes to an hour could now take up to three hours and require significantly more physical exertion from firefighters.
McDade said Phoenix Fire is already adjusting its staffing model in response.
"The Phoenix Fire Department is properly staffing and overstaffing technical rescue team members knowing that we might have to use multiple personnel," McDade said. "We don't want to wear our folks out. Our members are our greatest resource."
The department has also put a limit on how many rescues any single technical rescue team member can perform in a day during the summer.
"There's no Phoenix Fire technical rescue team member that's going to do more than 2 rescues in a day during the summer," McDade said. "That's it. They're stopped, they're going home or they're not going up the mountain anymore."
The day before it went offline, the helicopter performed a dramatic rescue
Wednesday, Phoenix Fire used the helicopter to rescue a man from Mummy Mountain using the hoist.
Video in the player above shows coverage of Wednesday's rescue.
McDade described it as a technically demanding operation.
"That was a very technical situation for our members. I talked to many members yesterday. They said they've never even been on Mummy Mountain at that point," McDade said. "It's easy to get up to, but it's hard to get down, and so that's a perfect situation to use our hoist, put him in a hot seat, secure the area. We were able to lift him up out of there and get him safely back down to the ground."
How the partnership between Phoenix Fire and Phoenix Police works
McDade explained that the Firebird helicopter belongs to Phoenix Police, whose pilots are primarily trained for law enforcement patrol. Over time, the two agencies developed a working relationship that pairs Phoenix Police pilots with Phoenix Fire's aircraft rescue technicians, known as ARCs.
"It's really a model of two agencies with no ego that work together, and the common theme is let's rescue people that need help," McDade said.
When Phoenix Fire arrives at a mountain rescue, the department runs the incident and requests Phoenix Police air support as needed. McDade said the two agencies train together year-round, not only for mountain rescues but also for stranded drivers, monsoon flooding, and river overflows.
Backup options exist, but are not guaranteed
McDade said Phoenix Fire has reached out to mutual aid partners and has contingency plans in place. Both the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office and the Arizona Department of Public Safety operate helicopters with hoist capabilities.
"If we get into a critical scene to where time truly is of the essence and we believe a hoist can make a big difference in this call, we're going to reach out to our mutual aid partners and ask them if they're available," McDade said.
However, those helicopters are not dedicated to Phoenix Fire and their availability cannot be guaranteed.
McDade said the department has mapped out scenarios for every mountain in the city.
"We lose the hoist helicopter, but we have Plan A, B, C, D, and E set up," McDade said. "We've played out every scenario on every mountain on what that would look like."
Phoenix Fire can also use a two-skid helicopter to ferry firefighters and gear to certain points on a mountain, even without hoist capability.
A direct message to hikers
McDade used the announcement as an opportunity to urge hikers to exercise caution, particularly as the city enters its most dangerous hiking conditions.
"Please use caution when you're hiking. Observe the days that the mountains are closed. Make sure you have enough water. Don't overextend yourself," McDade said. "You're now going to be asking Phoenix Fire technical rescue team members to put their life on the line, which we do. That's why we have this job, but we need the public to help us."
McDade said a common factor in many rescues is hikers pushing to reach the summit regardless of conditions.
"The majority of our calls is people felt they had to go to the very top of the mountain or it wasn't a successful hike," McDade said. "Go up halfway if you're out of water, it's time to come down."
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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