The Associated Press
DEVORE, Calif. — A medical helicopter crashed northeast of Los Angeles, killing the pilot and two crew members, authorities said. No patients were on board.
The Bell 412 utility helicopter crashed Sunday evening while en route from Loma Linda Medical Center to its base in Victorville, said Ian Gregor, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration.
The cause of the crash was under investigation, but Gregor said the pilot may have encountered fog before the crash 55 miles northeast of Los Angeles.
The helicopter belongs to Mercy Air Service, Inc., a subsidiary of Air Methods Corp., the nation’s largest operator of air ambulances.
A representative of Air Methods declined to comment Monday. There was no immediate response to a call seeking comment from Mercy.
The victims’ identities were not immediately released.
About 650 emergency medical service helicopters operate in the U.S., according to the FAA. A federal investigation earlier this year found there were 55 air ambulance accidents from 2002 to 2005. The number of medevac fatalities doubled to 62 in the 2001-05 period from the previous five years.