Medical copter crashes in Maryland; 4 die

DISTRICT HEIGHTS, Md. — The pilot of a medical helicopter twice radioed for help in foggy weather before crashing Sunday, killing four of the five people on board in the latest of a growing number of air-ambulance accidents, authorities said.

The medical helicopter was carrying victims of a traffic accident when it went down in a suburban Washington park. It was the deadliest medevac helicopter accident in Maryland since the State Police began flying those missions nearly 40 years ago, and the eighth fatal medical-helicopter crash in the past 12 months nationwide. About 30 people have died during that period, National Transportation Safety Board member Debbie Hersman said.

Crashes of medical aircraft have been increasing since the 1990s, in part because it is a booming business, fueled by the closing of emergency rooms in rural areas and an aging population, according to the National EMS Pilots Association.

An Airlift Northwest helicopter crashed into Puget Sound on Sept. 29, 2005, killing the pilot and two nurses. Investigators were unable to determine the cause of that crash.

The state-run program in Maryland, which does not charge for its services, was known for its safety record. It has had just three other fatal helicopter crashes in four decades.

"We are the only operation in the country that has the multiple mission of medevac, search and rescue, law enforcement, homeland security," State Police spokesman Greg Shipley said. "It's a very unique situation."

On Sunday, a veteran pilot, a flight paramedic, a county emergency medical technician and one of the traffic accident victims died in the crash, authorities said.

An 18-year-old woman also injured in the traffic accident in Charles County survived the helicopter crash. She was in critical condition at a hospital.

The helicopter was headed on a roughly 25-mile trip from the traffic accident to the hospital when the aircraft was diverted to Andrews Air Force Base late Saturday because of bad weather. As they approached, their runway location was changed and the pilot radioed that he was having trouble assessing his surroundings. He again asked for assistance with the landing, and that was the last air traffic controllers heard from him.

The chopper crashed about midnight, three miles from the base.

The NTSB and the Federal Aviation Administration were investigating the cause of the crash.

Information from Seattle Times archives is included in this report.