Medical helicopter crashes responding to fatal accident in Ohio

MILFORD TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WXIX/Gray News) - A medical helicopter crashed into power lines and went down while responding to a fatal vehicle accident in Butler County early Tuesday, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol and Butler County Sheriff’s Office.

Butler County Chief Deputy Anthony Dwyer told WXIX one of the three crew members on board the CareFlight medical helicopter suffered “an unknown injury” in the crash and was taken by ambulance to an area hospital.

The other two crew members were treated at the scene for minor injuries, according to the preliminary investigation at the scene, he said.

A medical helicopter that crashed into power lines and went down was one of three that had initially been called to the scene of a deadly crash.(FOX19 NOW)

Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers responded to the helicopter crash scene near U.S. 127 in Milford Township at the request of the Butler County Sheriff’s Office, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

Deputies and fire officials already were on the scene at U.S. 127 and Eaton Road after one person died and three others were hurt in a crash between two pickup trucks at about 4:15 a.m., county dispatchers said.

A CareFlight representative said in a statement: “Early this morning, a CareFlight helicopter operated by Air Methods Corp. responding to a vehicle accident in Butler County contacted wires and experienced a hard landing.”

According to the company, a patient was not on board at the time of the crash, and the three crew were able to safely exit the aircraft.

Air Methods has contacted the National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration to help with the investigation, CareFlight said.

The company also said they are “grateful that no one was seriously injured in this incident.”

Initially, three medical helicopters were called to the deadly crash, Butler County dispatchers confirmed. Then, they said only one helicopter was needed.

Shortly after, one of the helicopters crashed into power lines in the area and went down, according to the state highway patrol and Dwyer.

At first, nearly 400 Butler Rural Electric customers nearby lost power as a result, but service has since been restored, according to the utility’s website.

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