Portland hospital reroutes air ambulances amid laser pointer threat

A call to shine laser lights into the sky to thwart federal helicopters flying over South Portland has raised serious safety concerns and forced a major trauma hospital to divert air ambulances.

The online flyer, published on the homepage of Rose City Counter-Info, a self-described “anarchist counter-information platform in Portland, Oregon,” encourages participants to take part in a “laser tag” event targeting federal aircraft.

The post urges individuals to mask up, coordinate with others, and take steps to avoid identification, including cleaning laser pointers with alcohol, wearing gloves, and removing potential traces of DNA before disposing of them.

As a result of the planned activity, Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) reported that multiple air ambulance providers refused to land on the hospital’s rooftop helipad Saturday night. According to KGW.

HOMELAND SECURITY INTERVENED TO PORTLAND GROUP’S ‘LASER TAG’ THREATS: ‘THIS IS INCREDIBLY DANGEROUS’

Instead, they diverted their helicopters to nearby airports, requiring patients to be transported to OHSU by ground ambulance; This process is estimated to add 45 to 60 minutes to travel time.

“For most patients, this will be an acceptable delay. However, in some sensitive cases, such as unstable trauma patients, STEMI, and stroke, the delay can have real impacts,” OHSU said in an email to KGW. he said.

The hospital also advised staff to “include additional transition time in the decision-making process” and strongly encouraged the public not to attend the laser event, saying it was “extremely dangerous.”

OHSU later clarified that the decision to divert the flights was made by air ambulance vendors, not the hospital.

FORMER CNN CORRESPONDENT DESCRIBED PORTLAND AS A ‘PILOT PROGRAM TO NORMALIZING DOMESTIC MILITARIZATION’

A protester reacts to law enforcement officers throwing smoke grenades to disperse people gathered outside U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) headquarters in south Portland, Oregon, October 5, 2025. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

In a statement to Fox News Digital, the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) emphasized that pointing lasers at planes endangers both pilots and people on the ground and is prohibited under state and federal law.

The bureau added that it “regularly” arrests people who target police planes with lasers; including an arrest earlier this week. While police confirmed they monitored the ICE building on Saturday, they said the presence was no greater than normal. Police also reported that there were no laser attacks that night.

The Port of Portland, which oversees general aviation in the region, acknowledged the increase in helicopter and rotorcraft activity.

The downtown skyline glistens in the early morning waters of the Willamette River. (George Rose/Getty Images)

“We are aware of a higher volume of helicopter and rotorcraft activity over South and Southwest Portland,” the port said. “This appears to be related to federal law enforcement and/or military activities and is not a development that the Port of Portland can control.”

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also condemned the call to target planes with lasers and warned that the action was a federal crime.

ICE MANAGER SAYS PORTLAND FACILITY FACED VIOLENCE WITH ‘LITTLE HELP FROM LOCAL POLICE’

“Pointing a laser pointer at an aircraft is a federal crime. This is extremely dangerous to the safety of aircraft personnel and the public,” DHS Deputy Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a previous statement to Fox News Digital. he said. “Antifa domestic terrorists will not be able to invade our cities. We will dismantle their networks and bring every single one of them to justice.”

Federal officials cited a recent incident as evidence of the risks posed by such actions. On September 30, DHS reported that four Mexican citizens living illegally in the United States were arrested in Portland for allegedly shining a laser at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) helicopter, endangering both the crew and the people below.

While Portland remains the focal point of demonstrations against federal immigration enforcement, protests near the ICE facility have been ongoing for several weeks. In some cases, demonstrators displayed provocative items such as guillotines to symbolize opposition to federal actions.

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem observes the scene of ongoing protests at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Portland, Oregon, on October 7, 2025. (Mathieu Lewis-Rolland/Getty Images)

Earlier this week, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem visited the ICE facility in Portland and prayed with officers dealing with the ongoing unrest there.

But Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek disputed descriptions of widespread disorder. “There is no riot,” Kotek said, adding that he was confident that “local law enforcement will meet the necessary time.” He added that during his call with Noem, Oregon reiterated its expectation that DHS and ICE operations comply with state law.

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Kotek joined many other Democratic governors in opposing the Trump administration’s expanded federal enforcement efforts.

Fox News Digital has reached out to OHSU for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Rachel Wolf contributed to this report.

Stepheny Price covers crimes including missing persons, murders and immigration crime. Send story tips to stepheny.price@fox.com.