Three people died after two helicopters collided during firefighting coordination efforts in Cabazon, Riverside County.
The crash happened Sunday night around 7:20 p.m. near Pipeline Road and Apache Trail, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.
A Bell 407 helicopter, with a CalFire captain on board who was observing and coordinating airdrop operations, collided with a Sikorsky Skycrane helicopter.
The pilot, a captain, and a CalFire division chief aboard the Bell helicopter were killed. The Sikorsky S-64E helicopter, with two people on board, landed safely and no one else was injured.
“We’ve lost three great people,” CalFire South Region Chief Dave Fulcher told reporters during a news conference. “Although it was a tragic event, it could have been worse.”
National Transportation Safety Board spokeswoman Jennifer Grabis said that agency representatives would handle the investigation.
