FireDaily.com deeply regrets to report the line of duty deaths of three rescue workers as the result of a helicopter crash late Friday evening near the Belle Isle area of Georgetown County in South Carolina.
All three were crew members aboard the aircraft and identified as pilot Patrick Walters, 45, of Murrells Inlet, flight nurse Diana Conner, 42, of Florence (pictured right) and paramedic Rondolph Dove, 39, of Bladenboro, NC. No patients were on board and no other injuries were reported.
The Lifecare flight crew had just left the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston and headed to their base in Georgetown County, an area just inland from Myrtle Beach.
The last communications were received at 11:16 p.m. according to Georgetown Emergency Management Director Sam Hodge. After the helicopter failed to arrive, a search was initiated. Emergency crews did not arrive at the crash scene until after 1:00 a.m.
The National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Robert Sumwalt said today the pilot indicated clear weather upon leaving MUSC, but then the helicopter encountered severe upon approach to the Georgetown County airport. It crashed in a wooded area about 1 mile from the airport. Initial investigation indicated the helicopter impacted the ground nose first and there was no sign of an in-flight fire. The NTSB and FAA continue their investigation.
FireDaily.com extends our thoughts and prayers to the family and friends of these three everyday heroes who made better the lives of so many others. Know that you are not alone in your grief.
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