If proper MedEvac capabilities had been in place at Camp Humphreys in South Korea, Spc. Nicholas Panipinto would still be alive, Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., says.
Now, an amendment to the 2021 defense authorization bill would require that the Pentagon review MedEvac capabilities at all its installations.
Panipinto was killed in a vehicle rollover last November. The “heartbreaking” death was “preventable,” a letter from Buchanan to Secretary of Defense Mark Esper reads.
Panipinto lacked the training to operate the M2A3 Bradley Fighting Vehicle he was commanded to take on a road-test. The installation's vehicles were being operated with malfunctioning communication systems. And when Panipinto needed to be medically evacuated, the installation's system crumbled.
A military ambulance was not available -- at the military's largest overseas installation. The MedEvac helicopter dispatched from Camp Humphreys got lost trying to locate the scene of the accident. A second, civilian MedEvac helicopter had an insufficient oxygen supply, its suction equipment stopped functioning, and it didn’t have a blood transfusion supply. A second MedEvac helicopter dispatched from Camp Humphreys wouldn't even start.
Eventually, the first military MedEvac helicopter dispatched found Panipinto and the two other soldiers injured in the accident -- 80 minutes after the incident.
By the time he reached the hospital, he needed nine pints of blood and five pints of plasma transfused. He died later that day.
“The highest tribute that can be paid to the life of SPC Panipinto is that the Defense Department will make sure that future military personnel who are injured during training exercises can quickly receive high-quality medical treatment that might help save their lives,” Buchanan’s letter reads.
Buchanan’s amendment, included in the version of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act that passed the House last week, requires the DoD to examine emergency response capabilities and services currently available at every U.S. military base around the world and to report to Congress on the potential benefits and feasibility of requiring bases to have properly functioning MedEvac helicopters and fully-stocked military ambulances.
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