Franklin – An Andrews-based crew and one patient survived when an air ambulance en route from Peachtree to Asheville crashed on a roadway in Macon County just before 7 p.m. Thursday.
Federal aviation investigators were on scene Friday following the crash of Life Force 6, an EC-135 medical helicopter based at Western Carolina Regional Airport near Andrews. The cause of the crash was still being investigated.
Life Force Air Medical, which is headquartered in Chattanooga, Tenn., temporarily suspended air operations following the harrowing incident.
Robbie Tester, Erlanger Hospital’s vice president of Patient Logistics, said, “Safety is of the upmost concern to our program, and as such we have suspend all Life Force operations until our crews feel ready to return to service.”
Tester expressed gratitude to the health-care community “for providing great care to our Life Force family both on scene and in the hospital, and to the Macon County Sheriff’s Office and other local first responders for their assistance during this difficult time. I’m also grateful for all the calls, texts and concern shown by our staff, public safety agencies, and our air ambulance community from across the country.”
The helicopter crashed in the Burningtown community west of the Macon County Airport and northwest of Franklin around 7 p.m. Thursday. The helicopter was transporting a patient from Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital in Peachtree to Mission Hospital in Asheville when it declared a flight emergency, Macon County 911 Communications Supervisor Todd Seagle said.
Of those on board, three were transported by ground ambulance to Mission Hospital. Two flight crew members were treated and released over the weekend.
The pilot was taken to Angel Medical Center for evaluation and released. The condition of the patient, a 78-year-old Murphy resident, was unavailable other than being in stable condition Friday.
The two medics aboard the craft were flight paramedic Andy Lynn of Robbinsville and flight nurse Mike Van Beers of Blairsville, Ga. Both were released from hospital care over the weekend.
The names of the pilot and patient were not immediately available.
Macon County Emergency Services Director Warren Cabe said the aircraft sustained severe damage, but there was no fire at the crash. Wreckage from the crash blocked a stretch of Middle Burningtown and Olive Hill roads. Middle Burningtown Road was closed much of Friday as investigators looked into the cause of the crash.
Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Bureau incident reports were still being developed as of Monday morning. Life Force issued a statement on its Facebook page Friday.
“We do not have information regarding the circumstances or cause of the crash, but understand that the FAA and NTSB will be investigating, as is routine,” the statement reads. “Erlanger continues to accept patients via air medical transport. We are working with other air medical providers around the region to continue providing patient care transportation while our program is temporarily grounded.”
Erlanger President/Chief Executive Officer Jim Coleman Jr. also issued a statement Friday.
“Thankfully, all four individuals on board, including the patient, are alive,” he said. “I appreciate the compassion shown by these two hospitals as they cared for our crew and patient while keeping our team informed.”
Compiled by Cherokee Scout Editor Randy Foster with reporting assistance from the Franklin Press and The Graham Star.