 Three people were killed after two helicopters fighting a wildfire in California crashed on Sunday. The crash occurred after California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire) responded to a fire that sparked in the town of Cabazon, about 17 miles west of Palm Springs. Local firefighters in Riverside County responded to the fire around 6.00pm on Sunday evening. The blaze started as a building fire, but quickly expanded to cover about three acres of vegetation, CalFire Southern Region Chief David Fulcher said at a press conference early Monday morning. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The fire was started in Riverside County, about 17 miles west of Palm Springs (Picture: Elmurod Usubaliev/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images) While fighting the blaze, which was named the Broadway Fire, firefighters brought in both fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft – a Bell 407 helicopter and a Sikorsky S-64E Skycrane. The Bell helicopter was an observer, or a 'coordinator' aircraft, Fulcher said. The Sikorsky Skycrane was working as a water-dropping helicopter. 'While engaged in the firefight, the two helicopters collided,' Fulcher said. 'The first helicopter was able to land safely nearby, unfortunately the second helicopter crashed.' All three occupants of the second helicopter died. The victims included a contract pilot, a CalFire division chief, and a a CalFire captain. Firefighters at the scene of the helicopter crash (Picture: ABC7 Los Angeles via AP) The three victims have become the first casualties of the 2023 wildfire season in California. Their identities have not yet been released. 'The crash caused an additional four-acre fire, which was extinguished,' Fulcher added. Fulcher expressed his sympathies for the families of the victims. 'This was a tragic loss for the community, the fire servic){kind=link}
NEWS… BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT
Three people were killed after two helicopters fighting a wildfire in California crashed on Sunday.
The crash occurred after California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire) responded to a fire that sparked in the town of Cabazon, about 17 miles west of Palm Springs.
Local firefighters in Riverside County responded to the fire around 6.00pm on Sunday evening.
The blaze started as a building fire, but quickly expanded to cover about three acres of vegetation, CalFire Southern Region Chief David Fulcher said at a press conference early Monday morning.