Accident kills firefighting helicopter pilot in Oregon

August 25, 2020 | 4:24 a.m. PDT

White River Fire August pilot helicopter killed crash accident
White River Fire August 18, 2020. InciWeb.

The pilot of a helicopter was killed August 24 while assisting firefighters on the White River Fire in Oregon. According to the U.S. Forest Service the K-MAX helicopter was dropping water in rough terrain when the accident occurred.

Wasco County Sheriff’s Office and Forest Service air and ground resources responded immediately to the site. There will be an investigation into the accident, and the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration have been notified. The firefighter has not yet been identified.

The White River Fire has burned 1,102 acres of timber and light logging slash 11 miles southeast of Mt. Hood since it started from a lightning strike August 17. It is being suppressed by 304 personnel and a Type 2 incident management team led by Incident Commander Brian Goff.

We send out our sincere condolences to the family, friends, and co-workers of the pilot.

White River Fire August 24, 2020 Oregon helicopter accident
White River Fire August 24, 2020

Thanks and a tip of the hat go out to Jeff.

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Author: Bill Gabbert

After working full time in wildland fire for 33 years, he continues to learn, and strives to be a Student of Fire.

2 thoughts on “Accident kills firefighting helicopter pilot in Oregon”

  1. This is the 4th such incident & 5th death that I’ve counted in the news this wildfire season (Northern Hemisphere 2020).

    i.e. the 4th crash of an aircraft that was carrying water, including an incident in Portugal.

    It’s possible that I have mis-counted. Has anybody else been keeping track ?

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