Tragic Medical Helicopter Crash in Oklahoma City Kills Two and Critically Injures a Third Person

A medical helicopter crashed between a retirement center and a nursing home in Oklahoma City Friday morning, killing two people and critically injuring a third, according to media reports. The EagleMed helicopter, an AS 350, reportedly was leaving Baptist Hospital and was on its way to its home base in Watonga, Oklahoma, when it crashed about 5:45 a.m. Friday. Neighbors told the press they heard a loud explosion and immediately called 911. Smoke and flames could be seen in the area of the crash, witnesses said. The helicopter crashed in between St. Ann’s Retirement Center and St. Ann’s Nursing Home but did not strike the buildings. No one, according to authorities, was hurt in the buildings of the three crew members on board, two tragically died in the crash. A third crew member, reportedly in critical condition, was pulled from the wreckage just before the explosion. Nurses from the hospital along with passersby rushed over to help the crew members. One of the Good Samaritans reportedly was hurt while trying to help the lone survivor, but the condition of that person is not known. Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are on the scene to inspect the wreckage. It is the second fatal EagleMed helicopter crash in three years. In July, 2010, an EagleMed helicopter crashed in Kingfisher County, killing the pilot and a flight nurse. Another crew member survived that crash.