Kauai Crash Investigations Develop
Both of the helicopters that crashed in the last week on Kauai have been moved to a secure site. But crucial pieces from the second wreck on Sunday are still missing.
Five people were onboard the Hughes 500 helicopter that went down in Haena. Two of the passengers were reportedly celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary. Douglas and Judy Barton of Newport, New Hampshire are both in serious condition at the Queen's Medical Center. KGMB9 has learned the crash left 51-year-old Judy paralyzed from the waist down. Her 60-year-old husband is a machinist. He suffered multiple fractures when the chopper spiraled to the ground.
Donald Torres, the 30-year-old pilot, has been posting messages on his MySpace page letting everyone know he is okay. He is preparing a written statement for the National Transportation Safety Board. Investigators hope to interview him soon. On Tuesday, a new team from the NTSB inspected the wreckage at the YMCA camp.
"We haven't seen any residue that you would expect from a bird strike, but that doesn't mean that it didn't happen," said NTSB investigator Jim Silliman.
Several important parts, including the tail rotor and rotor blades, are still missing. Divers recovered some components on Monday, but not those key pieces of evidence. The rough surf kept them out of the water on Tuesday. Authorities hope a search on Wednesday will turn up more pieces.
"Obviously, that's a primary focus. But we're also looking at maintenance records, we're looking at pilot records and doing the things that we always do in an investigation," explained Silliman.
Another NTSB team is looking into last Thursday's Princeville crash. They interviewed Heli USA Airways employees and shipped out aircraft parts to the mainland for testing. An eyewitness also told them the collision appeared to happen slowly.
"She didn't find anything unusual about the movement of the helicopter until it very suddenly pitched nose over and contacted the ground nose down," said NTSB investigator Brian Rayner.
Heli USA officials canceled flights on Tuesday because of bad weather.
"We are a very professional team here and my primary concern as president of this company is to number one, take care of the families and number two, find out why the accident happened and make sure it doesn't happen again," said CEO Nigel Turner.
One of the passengers from that first flight, Cornelius Scholtz, has been upgraded from critical to serious condition.
Both wreckages are at a hangar at the Lihue airport. Initial reports from the NTSB should be done in about a week. Final reports will be issued in about a year.
Five people were onboard the Hughes 500 helicopter that went down in Haena. Two of the passengers were reportedly celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary. Douglas and Judy Barton of Newport, New Hampshire are both in serious condition at the Queen's Medical Center. KGMB9 has learned the crash left 51-year-old Judy paralyzed from the waist down. Her 60-year-old husband is a machinist. He suffered multiple fractures when the chopper spiraled to the ground.
Donald Torres, the 30-year-old pilot, has been posting messages on his MySpace page letting everyone know he is okay. He is preparing a written statement for the National Transportation Safety Board. Investigators hope to interview him soon. On Tuesday, a new team from the NTSB inspected the wreckage at the YMCA camp.
"We haven't seen any residue that you would expect from a bird strike, but that doesn't mean that it didn't happen," said NTSB investigator Jim Silliman.
Several important parts, including the tail rotor and rotor blades, are still missing. Divers recovered some components on Monday, but not those key pieces of evidence. The rough surf kept them out of the water on Tuesday. Authorities hope a search on Wednesday will turn up more pieces.
"Obviously, that's a primary focus. But we're also looking at maintenance records, we're looking at pilot records and doing the things that we always do in an investigation," explained Silliman.
Another NTSB team is looking into last Thursday's Princeville crash. They interviewed Heli USA Airways employees and shipped out aircraft parts to the mainland for testing. An eyewitness also told them the collision appeared to happen slowly.
"She didn't find anything unusual about the movement of the helicopter until it very suddenly pitched nose over and contacted the ground nose down," said NTSB investigator Brian Rayner.
Heli USA officials canceled flights on Tuesday because of bad weather.
"We are a very professional team here and my primary concern as president of this company is to number one, take care of the families and number two, find out why the accident happened and make sure it doesn't happen again," said CEO Nigel Turner.
One of the passengers from that first flight, Cornelius Scholtz, has been upgraded from critical to serious condition.
Both wreckages are at a hangar at the Lihue airport. Initial reports from the NTSB should be done in about a week. Final reports will be issued in about a year.
posted by ams at 4:27 PM
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