Firefighting helicopter crashes in Utah wildfire zone with two aboard
A Sikorsky S64 helicopter battling a wildfire in central Utah crashed on Friday with two people onboard, and rescuers have yet to reach the site because the crash sparked a new fire.
A Sikorsky S64 firefighting helicopter carrying two people crashed Friday morning in a remote part of central Utah, federal aviation authorities said. The US Forest Service initially declined to discuss the condition of those aboard, asking for patience while response efforts continued.
The crash occurred near Richfield, about 160 miles south of Salt Lake City. The exact circumstances remain unclear.
At a Friday evening briefing, Tyler Hecht, deputy incident commander with the Great Basin incident management team, described the terrain as "very difficult" and said rescuers had not yet reached the crash site, partly because the crash itself ignited a new fire. Asked about firefighter morale, Hecht said the mood was "very somber," though crews took a tactical pause before resuming firefighting efforts.
The Widemouth 2 fire
The helicopter had been working near the Widemouth 2 fire, a lightning-caused blaze that has burned through 105,000 acres since starting on 27 July. By Friday morning the fire was 19% contained, with 632 personnel and seven helicopters dropping water and retardant on it.
Widemouth 2 is one of eight large wildfires currently burning across Utah, which together have consumed more than 331,000 acres. Utah governor Spencer Cox called wildland firefighting one of the most dangerous jobs in the world, describing the crash as a painful reminder of the risks firefighters take on.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash. NTSB investigators are expected to reach Richfield by Saturday evening, once fire conditions allow safe access to the site to retrieve the aircraft.
The incident comes during a deadly wildfire season across the western US — three firefighters died in June battling a blaze along the Colorado-Utah border. Jamie Barnes, director of Utah's division of forestry, said earlier this summer that fires this year have spread faster and more unpredictably than veteran firefighters have seen before, straining resources statewide.
