Machine Down...

[Guest sharky]

Just heard about it. Sad news. Be careful out there everyone.

 

Canadian Press

 

GRANDE PRAIRIE, ALTA. — One man is dead and three others are injured after a helicopter crash in northern Alberta.

 

RCMP say the chopper was lifting off from a forestry tower at Nose Mountain southwest of Grande Prairie on Monday evening when it ran into problems.

 

It crashed 100 metres away from the takeoff site.

 

RCMP Corporal Al Fraser says he believes the helicopter was involved in fighting forest fires that have been burning in the region.

 

Police say the victim who died was a 20-year-old man from Valleyview, Alta. but they haven't released his name yet.

 

Three other males were taken to hospital — two were in serious condition.

 

Transport Canada is investigating the crash and will be at the site on Wednesday

 

The Globe and Mail

[Auto Relight]

Any idea on the outfit or the pilot? Lots of machines around that neck of the woods.

 

Sad news.

 

AR

[vintagemilano]

Very distant rumour is that it was one of the passengers that was the unlucky one. If the rumour is also correct then the company name has something to do with being highly accurate.

[Sailbad_the_Sinner]

As a member of Alberta SRD, the information I have recieved is that there was one Alberta firefighter killed, one Wildfire Ranger in stable condition and the pilot and another firefighter were assessed and released from the hospital. Sorry folks, no names as of yet or company info yet. So sad to hear a firefighter has passed in the line of duty. Hope the others make speedy recoveries

 

SS

[Helilog56]

A sad and tragic loss to a young man serving his province..........condolences to his family, friends and co-workers, and a speedy and complete recovery to the rest involved in this tragic accident.

[Fenestron]

i hope the edmonton journal changes their story, they reported the pilot as the fatality.

[twinstar_ca]

sincere condolences to the family of the man lost and speedy recovery to the rest..

 

please, please, please fly as safe as you can all...

[arctic_front]

sad news indeed. been a slow summer till lately...

 

as was already stated, FLY SAFE boys and girls. Make this the only tradgedy of the sesaon.

 

They are all counting on us.

[allbananas]

i hope the edmonton journal changes their story, they reported the pilot as the fatality.

 

 

It was the passanger being killed. Once guy walked away with a few scratches, the other two are seriously injured.

 

It is really sad to hear that things like this happen. Hopefully they will recover. My condolences to everyone involved.

[Mike Reyno]

A very sad story. Fly safe guys and gals....

 

Wed, July 5, 2006

'He loved flying'

Second trip in helicopter proves fatal for forest firefighter

 

By ELIZA BARLOW, EDMONTON SUN

 

 

 

 

Twenty-year-old Darcy Moses was taking his second trip up in a helicopter - helping in the forest fire effort - when the chopper crashed, killing him.

 

"He loved flying. He'd fly over and see our house and tell us how small we looked and how cool it was," his mom Margaret Fawcett, 42, said through tears yesterday.

 

"I was so proud of him."

 

Moses was one of four people on a Precision Helicopters chopper that had been hired by the province to do "initial attack" on forest fires, said Alberta Sustainable Resource Development spokesman Dave Ealey.

 

"They were checking on lightning strikes from a storm front that had passed through the area," he said.

 

Lightning strikes can result in the first stages of forest fires called "smokes" and quickly grow into huge infernos.

 

The Bell 206 Jet Ranger chopper went down moments after takeoff Monday evening, crashing about 100 metres from the takeoff site of the Nose Mountain Tower, southwest of Grande Prairie.

 

The other three occupants of the helicopter, including the pilot, survived the crash.

 

Two of the survivors were treated and released from the QE II Hospital in Grande Prairie, while the third remained in hospital in stable condition yesterday.

 

RCMP arrived at Fawcett's Sturgeon Lake First Nations home Monday night with the grim news.

 

"They said there was an accident and as soon as they said 'helicopter,' I knew it was Darcy," said Fawcett, her voice breaking.

 

Moses, the second-oldest of eight children and the father of a 15-month-old boy, always put family first, said his mom.

 

"No matter how much money he had, he'd try to give me most of it. I'd say, 'No, Darcy, think of yourself.' And he'd say, 'No, mom, give me $10 or $20 and I'll be fine.' He'd help out in every way he could."

 

Transportation Safety Board spokesman Jon Lee said two TSB investigators were on their way to the crash scene to start their probe.

 

"One of the issues we'll be looking at is survivability, because we have some people with minor injuries but we also have a fatality," said Lee.

 

"For us that is not unusual but it's something to look at."

 

Wayne Fawcett, Moses's stepfather, said the whole family is dealing with shock and disbelief over the tragedy.

 

"Everyone's moping around. It's hard to explain - it's something that was there that ain't there no more," he said.

 

"Darcy said it was a lot safer up there than it is on the ground - he said that just a couple of days ago."

 

The Fawcetts say they want answers as to why the aircraft went down. Precision Helicopters didn't respond to a request for comment.

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