Associated Press
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press
LAGUNA MADRE, Texas — Two people were killed and a third was missing after a medical helicopter crashed into a bay off the South Texas coast, officials said.
The helicopter crashed Tuesday night during a 30-mile trip from Harlingen to South Padre Island to pick up a patient, Cameron County Sheriff Omar Lucio said.
Lucio said the helicopter aborted its landing at South Padre Island, possibly because of bad weather, and was returning to Harlingen when it went down in Laguna Madre.
A witness reported seeing the helicopter crash into the bay, he said.
U.S. Coast Guard helicopters located the crash site about 2 1/2 miles west of South Padre Island. Divers recovered two of the bodies, both thought to be medics, Lucio said.
Authorities planned to resume searching for a third victim, who was thought to be the pilot, early Wednesday morning. There were no patients on board, Lucio said.
Investigators with the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were expected to arrive to the scene on Wednesday, Lucio said.
The helicopter was part of the Valley AirCare emergency service, the Brownsville Herald reported in a story on its Web site.
A representative of Valley Air Care referred Associated Press phone calls to Metro Aviation, which he said was the aircraft’s operator. A woman who answered the phone for Metro Aviation said the company had no comment.