[just had to fix that spelling in the subject]
Thanks to all who expressed concern for my son's well being and rapid
recovery. He was released from the hospital late Monday and is now
home. His principal injury was a massive laceration (ear to ear) at the
back of his head with much of the scalp pulled away from the underlying
tissue. Despite almost immediate first aid and very rapid med-evac
transport via helicopter to a hospital with trauma unit he still nearly
died from loss of blood. He lost about 50 percent of his blood.
Fortunately, his mother and I didn't know how serious it really was
until the really critical time was past. Possible infection is still a
concern since the wound was filled with debris.
I'm sure he will fly again but probably not soon. The doctor says it
will take 3-6 months to replenish his normal blood volume. He is very
weak and restricted to minimal physical activity.
The passenger, a New York State Forest Ranger, had a broken arm, two
broken ribs and a slight puncture in one lung. He was released earlier
and should have a complete recovery.
The helicopter collided with 120KV transmission lines at a height of 205
feet. The lines were running across a valley with the supporting towers
hidden in the trees. The helicopter fell backwards into the trees below
and then to the ground. The helicopter is a total loss. The only
undamaged part was the passenger side door. As it was breaking up from
the impact it also dumped its 98 gallons of jet fuel onto the forest
floor.
Fortunately, there was no fire. My son remembers none of it but the
passenger says my son was madly flipping switches to power down all the
systems on the helicopter as they were falling out of the sky. Who
knows, perhaps that helped avoid a fire which would have been fatal.
The next ordeal may be the lawyers. A helicopter from the Chataqua
County sherif's department visited the scene the next day to do some
investigation and there was nearly a second accident. That pilot flew
about 50 feet beneath the remaining wires without realizing he had done
so until warned by investigators on the ground. Supposedly, the power
company was warned years ago that the lines were essentially invisible
and needed to be marked. Obviously that hadn't been done.
Sorry, but I needed to talk. End of OT thread.
Chuck Norcutt
Woburn, Massachusetts, USA
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