A call by Portland anarchists to shine laser lights at federal helicopters created serious safety risks over the weekend, forcing a top trauma hospital to reroute emergency air ambulance flights.
The online flyer, posted on the homepage of Rose City Counter-Info, a self-described “anarchist counter-info platform in so-called Portland, Oregon,” encouraged participants to join in a so-called “laser tag” event aimed at federal aircraft.
The post urged individuals to mask up, coordinate with others, and take precautions to avoid identification.
Those precautions include cleaning laser pointers with alcohol, wearing gloves, and disposing of them without leaving DNA traces.
As a direct result, Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) confirmed that multiple air ambulance providers refused to land at the hospital’s rooftop helipad on Saturday night.
Instead, they were forced to divert patients to airports and transfer them by ground ambulance.
The diversions added an estimated 45 to 60 minutes of travel time for emergency patients.
“For most patients, that will be an acceptable delay,” OHSU told local outlet KGW in an email.
“However, for some sensitive situations, such as unstable trauma patients, STEMIs, and strokes, the delay could have real impacts.”
Hospital staff were warned to factor in the additional transit time, and OHSU strongly urged the public not to participate in the laser event, calling it “extremely dangerous.”
Police and DHS: Lasers At Aircraft Are A Federal Crime
The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) issued a reminder that pointing lasers at aircraft is both a state and federal crime, noting that such actions put pilots and the public in danger.
The bureau added that it “regularly” arrests individuals for targeting police aircraft with lasers and confirmed one such arrest earlier this week.
Police said they were monitoring the ICE facility on Saturday but reported no laser strikes that evening.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) also condemned the laser campaign, stressing that offenders will be prosecuted.
In a previous statement, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said:
“Aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft is a federal crime.
“This is incredibly dangerous for the aircraft personnel and for the public’s safety.
“Antifa domestic terrorists WILL NOT overrun our cities.
“We will bust their networks and bring every one of them to justice.”
Federal officials pointed to a September 30 incident where four Mexican nationals living in the U.S. illegally were arrested in Portland for allegedly shining a laser at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) helicopter.
Federal Activity, Ongoing Protests
The Port of Portland acknowledged a surge in helicopter and propeller aircraft traffic in South and Southwest Portland, saying the activity was related to federal law enforcement and military operations beyond the Port’s control.
Portland has remained a hub for ongoing demonstrations against federal immigration enforcement near the ICE facility, where activists have used provocative symbols, including a guillotine, to protest operations.
Earlier this week, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem visited the ICE facility in Portland, where she prayed with federal officers as unrest continued.
Oregon’s Democrat Governor Tina Kotek, however, sought to downplay the unrest, insisting:
“There is no insurrection.”
Gov. Kotek said she expressed to Noem her expectation that DHS and ICE “comply with state law.”
Kotek’s remarks place her among a number of Democrat governors pushing back against President Donald Trump’s expanded federal enforcement measures.
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