A Sikorsky S-64 heavy helicopter assisting in the firefighting effort against a central Utah wildfire crashed near Richfield on Friday (August 7), with the status of the two occupants aboard unknown. Additionally, a bulldozer operator in Oregon died in a wildfire on Thursday (August 6).
According to reports from the Associated Press (AP), the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) stated on Friday that the crash site is approximately 160 miles (258 kilometers) south of Salt Lake City. The helicopter was one of seven aircraft involved in local firefighting operations at the time.
Tyler Hecht of the Great Basin Incident Management Team revealed that the helicopter crashed in good flying conditions suitable for aircraft operations. The helicopter was operating in a steep terrain area at the time of the crash, which also sparked another fire.
Officials mentioned that due to the ongoing large fire near the crash site, rescue personnel were unable to reach the scene as of Friday evening. They hoped to access the crash site within the next 24 hours.
Sevier County Sheriff Nathan Curtis stated that the government did not want rescue personnel to take on greater risks, leading to more casualties. Firefighting operations were temporarily suspended after the incident but later resumed.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration will conduct a joint investigation into the cause of the crash. However, if the wildfires continue to spread, investigators may temporarily be unable to safely access the site.
The crashed helicopter was originally involved in fighting the wildfire ignited by lightning on July 27. As of Friday morning, the fire in Fishlake National Forest near Kanosh had expanded to 165 square miles (427 square kilometers).
The current containment rate of the fire is 19%, with over 600 firefighters participating in the firefighting efforts. The fire has led to local residents evacuating, with at least six structures destroyed.
Local firefighting teams received alerts on Friday about the potential for shifting winds, high temperatures, and dry thunderstorms with lightning in the area.
In an unrelated incident, the Wrights Spring fire in southern Oregon led to the death of 47-year-old Jason Ensign. According to the local sheriff’s office, Ensign died on Thursday (August 6) while operating a bulldozer for a lumber company when the fire rapidly spread, cutting off his escape route.
The U.S. Forest Service stated that this fire started east of Chiloquin on Wednesday (August 5) and had burned nearly 14 square miles (36 square kilometers) as of Friday.
The fire is still uncontained, with extreme hot and dry weather making it challenging to predict the fire’s behavior.
For months, consecutive dry weather, record-low snowfall in some areas, high temperatures, and shifting winds have exacerbated wildfire threats in Utah and other western regions of the United States.
In June, a fast-spreading wildfire in Colorado resulted in the deaths of four firefighters and one injury.