LOS ANGELES COUNTY : Block Suspends Plan to Cut Rescue Group’s Budget

Sheriff Sherman Block on Tuesday suspended a previously announced plan to cut the number of deputies assigned to his department’s Air Five rescue group in the Angeles National Forest from 17 to four, and to strip the force of its helicopter for budgetary reasons as of July 1.

An announcement said the program will remain in service on a reduced basis pending budget deliberations next month by the Board of Supervisors. A list released last week indicated the supervisors would consider funding the program, despite the projected cutbacks.

Under the reduced service schedule now contemplated, the helicopter and crew will be on active duty stationed at Barley Flats near Mt. Wilson on weekends. On weekdays, it would be on standby at the sheriff’s aero bureau in Long Beach.