Nonprofit partners with Drone814 to save lives in Central PA
CAMBRIA COUNTY, Pa. (WTAJ) — Nearly three years ago, several organizations in Cambria County devised an idea to deliver life-saving medical equipment with drones. The idea is set to become a reality by this summer.
On Monday, Aerium, a nonprofit at the forefront of aviation workforce development, announced its role as a strategic partner in the Drone814 (ELSa-M3) initiative.
'Someone will call 911. If the issue matches the medical equipment on board the drone, we will dispatch the drone along with the ambulance while the ambulance is en route to you. The drone is also en route, and because the drone doesn't have to navigate traffic, worry about roads, the drone can get there in a few minutes,' John Eberhardt, Managing Director at ATA Aviation said.
Local beekeeper emphasizes the importance of honeybees for the environment
The 911 dispatcher will provide instructions on how to use the equipment while crews are on their way. Some equipment they're prepared to deliver is Narcan, defibrillators, tourniquets and oral glucose.
Eberhardt said they need to use all the tools at their disposal to ensure that public safety services can serve people. The initial program will launch around Johnstown, Southmont and Westmont.
'We're focused there because we have to start in a small area to prove out the concept and collect the safety data to show the FAA that the program is safe,' Eberhardt noted.
Test flights are expected to start the first week of June. Then more flights will come in July and August.
'We will be doing actual live delivery flights for two weeks in the middle of July and two weeks in the middle of August. And the reason for that is to collect the data that we need to go back to the FAA and get final approvals, and then also go back to the USDOT for our next round of funding so we can make this a full-time service,' Eberhardt added.
The data that's collected will not include any personal information or video. Once launched, the organization is also looking to expand to Somerset, Blair, Westmoreland and Indiana Counties.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
FDA's AI tool for medical devices struggles with simple tasks
A new Food and Drug Administration AI tool that could speed up reviews and approvals of medical devices such as pacemakers and insulin pumps is struggling with simple tasks, according to two people familiar with it. The tool — which is still in beta testing — is buggy, doesn't yet connect to the FDA's internal systems and has issues when it comes to uploading documents or allowing users to submit questions, the people say. It's also not currently connected to the internet and can't access new content, such as recently published studies or anything behind a paywall. The artificial intelligence, dubbed internally CDRH-GPT, is intended to help staffers at the agency's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, a division responsible for ensuring the safety of devices implanted in the body as well as essential tools like X-rays and CT scanners. The division was among those affected by the sweeping mass layoffs at the Department for Health and Human Services earlier this year. While many of the device reviewers were spared, the agency eliminated much of the backend support that enables them to issue approval decisions on time. The work of reviewers includes sifting through large amounts of data from animal studies and clinical trials. Depending on the applicant, it can take months or even over a year — which an AI tool could feasibly help shorten. Experts, however, are concerned that the FDA's push toward AI could outpace what the technology is actually ready for. Since taking over the agency on April 1, Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary has pushed to integrate artificial intelligence across the FDA's divisions. How this move into AI could affect the safety and effectiveness of drugs or medical devices hasn't been determined. Last month, Makary set a June 30 deadline for the AI rollout. On Monday, he said the agency was ahead of schedule. But the two people familiar with CDRH-GPT say that it still needs significant work and that FDA staff were already concerned about meeting the June deadline, at least in its original form. 'I worry that they may be moving toward AI too quickly out of desperation, before it's ready to perform,' said Arthur Caplan, the head of the medical ethics division at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City. He stressed that reviewing medical devices accurately is essential, since people's lives depend on it. 'It still needs human supplementation,' Caplan said. AI 'is really just not intelligent enough yet to really probe the applicant or challenge or interact.' The FDA directs all media inquiries to the Department of Health and Human Services. A spokesperson for HHS did not respond to a request for comment. On Monday, Makary announced that a separate AI tool, called Elsa, had been rolled out to all FDA employees. Elsa is now intended for basic tasks agency-wide, such as summarizing data from adverse event reports. 'The first reviewer who used this AI assistant tool actually said that the AI did in six minutes what it would normally take him two to three days to do,' Makary said in an interview last week. 'And we're hoping that those increased efficiencies help. So I think we've got a bright future.' The reality inside the agency is quite different, the same two sources said. While the concept is solid and a step in the right direction, they said, some staff feel it's being rushed and not yet ready for prime time. 'AI tools to help with certain tasks for reviewers and scientists seems reasonable given the potential utility of AI,' one of the people said. However, the person said they disagree with the 'aggressive roll out' and claims that it could reduce work 'by hours and days.' To be sure, experts say, it's not uncommon for a company or government agency to launch a new product and then refine it through iterative updates over time. Staff have worked hard to get Elsa up and running, the people said, but it still can't handle some core functions and needs more development before it can support the agency's complex regulatory work. When staff tested the tool Monday with questions about FDA-approved products or other public information, it provided summaries that were either incorrect or only partially accurate, one of the people said. It's unclear, the people said, whether CDRH-GPT will eventually be integrated into Elsa or remain a standalone system. Richard Painter, a law professor at the University of Minnesota and a former government ethics lawyer, said there are also concerns about potential conflicts of interest. He wondered whether there is a protocol in place to prevent any government official — such as an FDA reviewer using the technology — from having financial ties with companies that could benefit from AI. While the technology has existed for years, he said, it's still a new venture for the FDA. 'We need to make sure that the people involved in these decisions do not have a financial interest in the artificial intelligence companies that would get the contracts,' Painter said. 'A conflict of interest can greatly compromise the integrity and the reputation of a federal agency.' Some at the FDA don't see AI as a solution to their overwhelming workloads — they see it as a sign that they may eventually be replaced. The FDA is 'already spread thin from the RIF [layoffs] and the steady loss of individuals while in a hiring freeze and no capacity to backfill,' one of the people said. This article was originally published on
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Docs: Suburban couple bought more Narcan instead of calling 911 in toddler's suspected deadly overdose
Note: Information from court documents below provide details into a toddler's death from alleged neglect. Discretion is advised. HOMER GLEN, Ill. — A Homer Glen couple bought more Narcan via Uber for their 2-year-old, who was going through a suspected deadly drug overdose at the time, instead of calling 911, court documents reveal. First-degree murder charges were announced Monday night for Edward Weiher, 49, and his fiancé, Alexa Balen, 28, after they were initially faced multiple neglect charges last November. Police in Will County were called to the home Weiher and Balen, located in the 2200 block of West Thorn Apple Drive, just after 11:30 p.m. on Nov. 6, 2024, for reports of an unresponsive child and a possible carbon monoxide leak. They found Weiher, who owns the home, performing chest compressions on two-year-old Trinity Balen-Weiher on an ottoman in the living room when they arrived. Balen and her six-year-old daughter were also inside the home. Police observed the large residence trashed with various items covering the floor, court documents reveal. The entire floor was covered with garbage, food, urine and feces, authorities allege. Police also observed a white substance, suspected to be cocaine and heroin, spread throughout the countertops and tables. Additionally, several pieces of burnt tin foil were on the found on the ground believed to be from doing heroin. Suspected heroin was found on a mattress in the living room where Trinity and the rest of the family slept that night, according to authorities. When police initially arrived, Weiher claimed his handheld meter registered a reading of natural carbon monoxide at 6,000 parts per million, prompting him to turn off the boiler and open the windows. Levels that high would cause residents to be unconscious and possibly die within 20 minutes, according to multiple studies. A utility company was called to the scene as police continued to investigate. The company said that service was not working Sept. 30 through Nov. 2 due to non-payment, but was recently restored. A small gas leak was found in the basement, but it was not determined to be a lethal amount. Balen was interviewed by detectives first at the scene. She admitted to police that she and Weiher use heroin on a regular basis after initially claiming Trinity stopped breathing due to suspected high levels of carbon monoxide. Balen said she wanted to call 911 after the couple failed to correctly administer a dose of Narcan to Trinity. Narcan is a drug that typically reverses the effects of an opioid overdose as it's happening. She claimed Weiher said they should not so they ordered more Narcan through Uber, according to court documents. It did not work and Trinity stopped breathing, documents state. 911 was then called. She was transported to the hospital by authorities where she died. Weiher said the same story after initially claiming Trinity was unconscious due to carbon monoxide poisoning. Police recovered approximately nine grams of suspected heroin in various locations throughout the home that were allegedly in 'reaching distance' of Trinity. A small bag of 21 pills, commonly known at Xanax, were also recovered. Balen's daughter, 6, was taken into the custody of DCFS. Her system tested positive for fentanyl and cocaine, according to police. Weiher and Balen were taken into custody and faced initial charges of child endangerment resulting in death, child endangerment and two counts of possession of a controlled substance. Detectives conducted a forensic investigation of Balen's phone and determined that 911 was not called for approximately three hours and 41 minutes into Trinity's suspected overdose. Additionally, Balen is accused of searching 'how to stop an od' and 'how to stop an od without naloxone' on her phone during the incident. The digital receipt of the Uber purchase of Narcan was also recovered. A pathologist concluded that Trinity 'would have survived' if EMS was activated when Trinity became symptomatic of an overdose, documents allege. A first-degree murder indictment was filed on May 22 for both Weiher and Balen. They were not rebooked on the charge of first-degree murder and a judge granted them pre-trial release. In the state's motion to deny that, they cited that Weiher and Balen could be a risk to leave the area due to 'significant funds' and claimed he made $750,000 in 2021, court documents state. The couple's next court date is scheduled for June 27. WGN News has contacted the couple's defense attorney and this story will be updated. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Chicago Tribune
3 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Homer Glen couple now face murder charges for November death of 2-year-old child
A Homer Glen couple has been charged with first-degree murder in the drug overdose death of their 2-year-old daughter last year, authorities announced this week. Edward Weiher, 49, and Alexa Balen, 28, were indicted Monday on first-degree murder charges, which allege they failed to seek timely medical care for their child, Trinity Balen-Weiher, after knowing the toddler was experiencing an overdose episode at their Homer Glen home in November, according to the Will County sheriff's office and Will County court documents. The charges state the couple allowed Trinity access to a controlled substance, which caused her death. The couple has also been charged with endangering the life or health of a child, a felony, in connection with Trinity's death as well as endangering the life or health of a child, a misdemeanor, for providing unsafe living conditions for another child in the home, the charges state. The other child, Balen's daughter, was subsequently placed in protective custody and later released to the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, the sheriff's office said. Weiher and Balen were also charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance, a felony. The Will County sheriff's office responded to a 911 call Nov. 6 about an unresponsive child. When police arrived, Weiher was giving chest compressions to Trinity on an ottoman in their living room, the sheriff's office said. The Homer Township Fire Department took Trinity to Silver Cross Hospital, where she died Nov. 7. An investigation at the Thorn Apple Drive home that Weiher bought for $900,000 found deplorable living conditions, which included garbage, rotting food, soiled diapers and clothing, medical waste and significant evidence of narcotics use, police and court documents said. The coroner's report from January states that Trinity died of fentanyl, cocaine and bromazolam intoxication, according to court documents. Detectives reviewed Balen's web search history, which included a search on how to stop an overdose, court records show. They also located a receipt for the overdose medication Narcan that the couple ordered to be delivered. Court documents also state Trinity would have begun overdosing for about three hours and 41 minutes before Balen called 911. Heroin and Xanax pills were discovered throughout the home, within reach of both children, the sheriff's office said. Police also found multiple doses of used Narcan near Trinity. Prosecutors retained an expert in medical toxicology and emergency medicine who opined that if paramedics were immediately on the scene, Trinity could have survived. 'If the EMS system were activated when the child became sleepy or symptomatic of an overdose there would be have been a chain of life-saving measures instituted,' Dr. Steven E. Aks said in court documents. 'Rapid administration of naloxone could have woken the child up and may have been lifesaving.' The parents in November were initially charged with a felony count of endangering the life or health of a child, two counts of unlawful possession of a controlled substance and a misdemeanor count of endangering the life or health of a child, and were ordered held in custody. Earlier this year, the couple petitioned for pre-trial release, which was granted under several conditions, including home confinement, electronic monitoring and having no contact with any minor child. The couple's attorney, Cosmo Tedone, said they are not a flight risk and have been compliant with their pretrial conditions. Balen spent a month in an in-patient drug treatment facility, Tedone said. The couple has been on home confinement and electronic monitoring, is seeking medical help and has complied with weekly drug testing, Tedone said. They haven't tested positive for drugs, he said. Tedone said he will be fighting the upgraded charges and will review the state's expert witness report, which he believes to have holes. The case could go to trial sometime next year, Tedone said.
