Philly plane crash: Local medical transport team provides perspective
Medical transport team talks about Philly crash
A medical transport team based out of Children's Wisconsin provided their perspective on the medical plane crash in Philadelphia in January.
MILWAUKEE COUNTY, Wis. - More than one week after a medical transport jet crashed in Philadelphia, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is working to figure out what caused the disaster.
FOX6 is getting new reaction from a similar transport team based out of Children’s Wisconsin, providing a new perspective on their work.
Crash in Philadelphia
The backstory:
It happened in a flash. A medical transport jet carrying a child, her mother, and four crew members crashed in northeast Philadelphia on Jan. 31.
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All six people on board the medevac plane and a person on the ground died in the fiery crash.
Philly plane crash: New details emerge about child patient, mom among 7 killed
A young girl fighting to survive, and a mom who was constantly by her side. Both lives were tragically taken when a plane crashed in Philadelphia last week, and now their heartbreaking story is being told by their community.
Local perspective
What they're saying:
"Especially being in this line of work, whenever you see something like that happen. It’s just that makes you stop and think for a second," said Transport Nurse Timothy Coenen.
He and Scott Mannebach, a Transport Respiratory Therapist at Children’s Wisconsin, are sharing their reaction to the disaster.
"It hit me hard. My wife doesn’t want to talk about it because she’s afraid it might happen to me too," said Scott Mannebach.
Timothy Coenen and Scott Mannebach
But Mannebach, who has been with the transport team for more than two decades, also talked about the rarity of a crash like this.
"I’ve been here for 22 years. This is the second medical transport plane that I believe crashed in 22 years, so there is a good track record for it," Mannebach added.
They’re part of a team of medical staff responsible for transporting critically ill or injured kids to Children’s Wisconsin by air and ground.
In an Instagram post, the hospital said it’s the only neonatal and pediatrics focused inter-facility team in the region.
Children's Wisconsin Transport Team
"I’ve gone to California, Texas, Florida," said Mannebach. "Any place over a five-hour drive would be a fixed-wing. That means an airplane."
While their job takes them to new heights, working with patients is gratifying and grounding.
"I really try to focus everything I have into that child at that exact moment. Help them out as best I can," said Coenen.
Medical Transportation via helicopter
Crews have filled the crater left behind from the crash in Philadelphia.
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As federal investigators try to pinpoint what went wrong with the plane, the Children’s Wisconsin team assures me they feel safe in the sky.
"They do make sure all the protocols are in place. The pilots know what they’re doing, the mechanics know what they’re doing," said Mannebach.
"Definitely just heartbroken. All of our thoughts and prayers go out to all the families that were affected by this devastating tragedy," said Coenen.
The Source: FOX6 spoke to Timothy Coenen and Scott Mannebach, who work with the Children's Wisconsin medical transport team. Previous reporting on the Philadelphia plane crash provided by FOX affiliates.