RESCUE CHOPPER GROUNDED HIRING FREEZE DELAYS REPAIR.

Byline: Bhavna Mistry Staff Writer

LONG BEACH - A countywide hiring freeze and budget constraints have grounded a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department rescue helicopter for 30 days.

The air ambulance known as Air Rescue-5, which responds to emergencies in the Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys, is out of service while officials await approval to hire civilian mechanics for repairs, sheriff's Capt. James Di Giovanna, head of the department's Aero Bureau, said Wednesday.

The bureau's request for help from the county's chief administrative officer failed.

``We have asked the CAO to make an exception to the hiring freeze,'' Di Giovanna said. ``We are three mechanics down and are working very diligently to try and bring them back but at this point it's out of our hands.''

Though budgeted for 13 mechanics, the Aero Bureau is down to nine - with three vacancies and one employee on military leave.

Officials in CAO David Janssen's office said the county does make hiring-freeze exemptions for positions that are critical. But the emergency helicopter did not qualify.

``The CAO has to approve critical positions,'' spokeswoman Judie Hammond said. ``But the Sheriff's Department is over budget and if you have a department that is over budget they would have to look to their hiring to bring their expenditures in control.''

The need for helicopter mechanics was illustrated this week when the department was forced to ground all three of its rescue air squads because of unexpected repairs.

``We're using resources that we have available,'' Di Giovanna said. ``We're working on the repairs. We are hoping to put it into place by the end of the month.''

The department has three rescue helicopters, but typically operates just one at any given time.

Under a standard rotation, one copter is in use, one is on stand-by and one is undergoing routine maintenance.

``It's not a normal thing that we have all three down at one particular time,'' Di Giovanna said. ``If we don't fly it doesn't cost, but at the same time we're not providing vital service.''

The county Fire Department has a helicopter for rescues and is taking over as needed, covering crashes and other emergencies in the sprawling northern county.

``Nothing has changed for us,'' said fire Battalion Chief Gerald Cosey, of that department's Air Operations Division. ``Before they even came into service, we were already covering Los Angeles County.''

Air Rescue-5 responds to mountain and desert searches as well as swift- water rescues and flooding. The helicopters transport specialized response teams and backup and helps other regional law enforcement agencies under mutual aid agreements.

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Photo:

(ran in SAC and Valley editions only) The Sheriff's Department's Air Rescue-5 sees some action in the photo taken before the unit was grounded for 30 days.

Gene Blevins/Special to the Daily News