Firefighting helicopter crashes while battling wildfire in US Utah
Los Angeles, Aug 8 (IANS) A firefighting helicopter crashed Friday (local time) while battling a large wildfire in the US state of Utah, authorities said.
A Sikorsky S-64 helicopter carrying two people crashed near Richfield, Utah, around 10 a.m. local time (1700 GMT), according to the US Federal Aviation Administration.
Fire officials said the helicopter crashed in the vicinity of the Widemouth 2 Fire, currently the second-largest wildfire of Utah’s 2026 fire season, reports Xinhua news agency.
Emergency personnel were dispatched to the scene, according to authorities. Information on the condition of the two people aboard the helicopter was not immediately available.
The US Forest Service at Fishlake National Forest said in a post on social media that emergency personnel were on the scene.
“Our top priority is responding to the incident. Local, state, and federal authorities are assisting in the response,” it said. “Information will be released as soon as it is available. Please be patient as the response to this incident continues to occur and safety actions are prioritized first.”
The lightning-caused wildfire, which was discovered on July 27, has burned more than 105,000 acres (about 425 square km), and is 19 per cent contained, according to Utah Fire Info, the interagency public information resource on wildfires in the state.
More than 600 firefighting personnel are battling the blaze, which has triggered evacuations and destroyed at least six structures as it burns through timber, brush and grass.
Earlier in June, four firefighters were killed and a fifth injured after being caught in a fast-moving wildfire in Colorado. As flames rapidly engulfed their position, the crew deployed tent-like emergency fire shelters in an attempt to protect themselves from the blaze.
–IANS
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