3 Crew Members Die in Medical Helicopter Crash
3 Crew Members Die in Medical Helicopter Crash
Three crew members died in a medical helicopter that crashed in coastal South Carolina.
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators said that the chopper was trying to land at a nearby airport.
The helicopter had just dropped off a patient at a hospital in Charleston and was flying to Conway, about 90 miles northeast, when it crashed about 11:30 p.m. Friday, according to the NTSB. A thunderstorm had rolled through the area shortly before the crash, according to the National Weather Service.
The same helicopter, an American Eurocopter AS350B2 was damaged last year after scheduled maintenance on the aircraft was delayed, according to NTSB records. Two other incidents occurred in recent months regarding this chopper and another similar helicopter operated by the same company but no one was injured. The safety agency continues to investigate the cause of this crash.
Earlier this month, the NTSB urged the government to impose stricter controls on emergency helicopter operations. Last year there were nine accidents between December, 2007, and October, 2008, killing 35 people.