On December 18, 1984, the PCMH Board of Trustees budgeted $754,119 to set up a helicopter ambulance service. EastCare was established by PCMH on April 8, 1985. On June 30, 1985, an open house was held to usher in the new ambulance service. EastCare helped VMC become a level 1 trauma center in November 1985. It expanded to critical care ground transport in August 1994. By 2000, VMC adds a second helicopter to their fleet. Also, VMC begins the construction of a new emergency department. The four-story emergency department is a two-helicopter rooftop landing pad which was complete in November 2003. The communication center is also located on the top floor of this tower, overlooking the helipad. In 2009, the ground ambulances went on more than 10,000 trips.
1987 crash
EastCare flew in a Bell206L LongRanger helicopter to the Naval Hospital at Camp Lejeune on January 8, 1987 to transport a child. The helicopter crashed around 9:30 pm in the Hoffman Forest, near Pollocksville in Jones County. Pilot Perry L. Reynolds, flight nurses Mike McGinnis and Pam Demaree, and the patient all died. The crew reported a fire on board during its last Mayday. Marine search and rescue from Air Station New River found the burning wreckage around 9:40 pm. Most of the cabin was burned away and the last body was removed at around 2:00 am and all taken to Jacksonville. The National Transportation Safety Boards preliminary results suggested the helicopter banked to the right with its nose down when it crashed.
On September 16, 1999, Hurricane Floyd made landfall in North Carolina. The Tar River, which runs through Greenville, suffered the worst flooding, exceeding 500-year flood levels along its lower stretches; it crested above flood stage. Damages in Pitt County alone were estimated at $1.6 billion. VMC turned into a landing zone for helicopters landing and departing. VMC at the time owned one helicopter. EastCare flew 102missions from landfall to ten days later. The first mission occurred on the afternoon of landfall. EastCare transported a woman who had been rescued Pinetops from her rooftop who was nearing labor. The situation far exceeded VMC's aerial capability. Mission St. Joseph's Health System in Asheville sent one helicopter for two days, the STAT MedEvac sent one helicopter and two teams for six days and Rocky Mountain Air, the company that owned the EastCare helicopters at the time, sent one helicopter for two days. Many military helicopters from the North Carolina Air National Guard were used to help rescue survivors and bring them to the hospital. At the height of the aftermath there were as many as thirty helicopter missions each day, more than ten times the rate normally. A few days after the storm hit, the staff was fatigued and was replaced. It became Vidant EastCare's job to fly and pick up staff who work at the hospital. Vidant EastCare also transported patients and supplies to and from the hospital.
Air ambulances
Vidant EastCare currently has six helicopters with bases in Bertie County, Nash County, Craven County, Wayne County, and Onslow County. Metro Aviation, Inc., based in Shreveport, LA. is the aviation operator. The helicopters complete around 3,500 transports per year, with the average one-way flight being 45 minutes. The callsign for dispatch is "E-Comm" and for the helicopters are "EastCare Air1", "EastCare Air2", EastCare Air3", "EastCare Air4" "EastCare Air5", and "EasCare Air6".
Ground transport
Vidant EastCare began critical care ground transport in 1994. The ambulances include two neonatal transfer ambulances and ten type-I ambulances. There are also twenty four ambulances for advanced and basic life support. The ground transport vehicles are primary stationed either in Greenville or at one of the bases. The other stations are Bertie County, Duplin County, Nash County, Onslow County and Pitt County.
Awards and recognitions
In 1993, it was the first program east of the Mississippi River and fifth overall to be accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems. By 1996, it was the first program to be re-accredited and the first to be accredited for critical-care ground transport. In 2000, it was selected as the Program of the Year by the Association of Air Medical Services. It received the Helicopter World/Air Ambulance Search and Rescue 2001 Award for its work during Hurricane Floyd.
