Hero pilot may have saved lives after medical helicopter crashed in Chicago, hospitalizing four including the patient being transported
- The Eurocopter 135 air ambulance crashed around 9.15pm on the South Side
- Three crew members listed as stable and the original patient in critical condition
- Cause of the crash has not been identified, but it is under investigation
A hero pilot may have saved lives after a medical helicopter crashed in Chicago on Saturday night.
According to the Chicago Tribune, the helicopter was transporting a patient around 9.15pm when it crashed on the South Side of Chicago.
The patient in the helicopter was taken to a hospital in critical condition, said Chicago Fire Deputy District Chief Walter Schroeder, while the three crew members onboard were transported in stable condition.
It is currently unclear what caused the crash, which occurred near the intersection of I-57 and I-94.
Four people have been injured after a medical helicopter crashed in Chicago on Saturday night around 9.30pm
The pilot made a mayday call before the accident occurred, according to Schroeder.
He commended the pilot for putting the aircraft down in a grassy median away from traffic.
Chicago Fire Department Deputy District Chief Lynda Turner said the helicopter was not on fire when emergency crews arrived but it was smoking.
'I think the pilot did an excellent job of landing a helicopter that was in an emergency situation,' she said in a press conference.
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Turner added that three out of the four on board had it made out of the plane before help arrived. No ages or sexes have been released.
The helicopter that crashed was a Eurocopter 135 air ambulance, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
It is currently unclear why the Eurocopter 135 air ambulance crashed, but it is under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration
The helicopter was headed towards Gary Airport but it is currently unclear where it was coming from.
ABC 7 Chicago reported that two of the four injured were taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center and the other two to the University of Chicago Hospital.
Witnesses told the station that the chopper was on fire before it landed on a grassy area near the Bishop Ford Expressway.
The FAA reported that the National Transportation Safety Board has been notified and the incident is under investigation.
