the current 40 minutes or more wait time that we have now,” stated Ahoskie Town Councilman Matt Bradley. “This is a huge accomplishment to have a helipad onsite vs. “to load our patients in the quickest and least troubled way.” VRCH President Judy Bruno stated the primary goal is to expedite care at the highest level…. Todd added that constructing the helipad at site #2 would cause the helicopter to fly over more homes.Ī question was posed about the hospital devising a plan that would prevent the main lobby scenario, but was told that was not an option due to a significant amount of remodeling and new construction. That’s a negative for the patient and the public.” “You’ll have these critically ill patients coming through the main entrance. “That pathway takes you through the main lobby of the hospital,” he noted. Tripp said that option #2 was studied, but presented many drawbacks, to include a longer travel path from the ER. Later in the meeting it was noted there were 380 medical helicopter landings at the high school in 2020.īrown also voiced her concern over why the valet parking lot was not a viable choice. The other site we were talking about is away from that intersection, but still on the hospital campus.” It’s only a matter of time before there’s an accident and there’s another patient in the ER. “There will be people driving while looking at the helicopter,” said Brown. Based on that report, Tripp said Vidant’s application is viable for use as an emergency services helipad when designed in accordance with the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) Advisory Circular guidelines.Īhoskie Planning Board member Meryl Brown asked if any consideration had been given to the intersection of Academy Street and Memorial Drive being one of the busiest in the area. He said an engineer with TruHorizon performed a sound study at and near the proposed landing zone and found the noise level at the nearest structure to be “less than a siren at ground level, which is within the range of street traffic noise.”įEC Heliports, a firm specializing in the design of such facilities, issued a report based on the specifications of the helipad under consideration at VRCH.

Todd Tripp, a civil design engineer with The East Group, presented Vidant’s plans for the proposed helipad. Another location mentioned is the current valet parking lot located off the main visitors parking area at the hospital’s front entrance. Vidant officials say their top choice is a parking lot, currently used by VRCH physicians, located across West Memorial Drive from the employees’ entrance to the hospital.

A debate, to include a public hearing held in March by the Ahoskie Town Council, has ensued for several months over the exact location of the helipad.

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