Two firefighters and a pilot have reportedly been killed after a mid-air collision involving two helicopters tackling a hearth in California.
Emergency officers mentioned the aircrafts had been preventing a blaze in Riverside County, within the south of the US state.
Cal Fire Southern Region Chief David Fulcher mentioned fireplace crews had been attending a constructing fireplace in the neighborhood of Cabazon which had prolonged into the vegetation round it.
A full wildland fireplace dispatch was initiated, which included fixed-wing and rotary-wing plane, and that is when the collision occurred.
Sheriff’s deputies responded to the air emergency within the space of Pipeline Road and Apache path at 7.20pm, based on a publish by the Riverside County Sheriff’s workplace on X, previously generally known as Twitter.
“Unfortunately, the second helicopter crashed and tragically all three members perished which included one Cal Fire Division chief, one Cal Fire captain and one contract client pilot,” Chief Fulcher mentioned throughout a information convention early on Monday.
Chief Fulcher didn’t establish the victims.
The different helicopter landed safely and nobody on board was damage however the crash brought about a further 4-acre (1.6-hectare) fireplace, which was extinguished.
The helicopter which crashed was performing work underneath contract with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, fireplace captain and spokesman Richard Cordova mentioned.
The incident is being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board.
Source: information.sky.com”