4 killed in Maryland State Police helicopter crash

[MattInFla]

Four people were killed early this morning when a Maryland State Police medical evacuation helicopter crashed in a park near Capitol Heights after encountering bad weather, authorities said.

Two Maryland State troopers, a Charles County emergency medical technician and one of two female patients the crew was transporting from a motor vehicle accident to Prince George's Hospital were killed, said Mark Brady, spokesman for the county's Emergency Medical Services Department.

The other patient, a teenage girl, who was already in critical condition following the motor vehicle crash in Waldorf, survived the helicopter crash. She was transported the remaining distance to the hospital by ambulance, Brady said.

The crash was the deadliest in the 47-year history of the Maryland State Police aviation unit, and the department's first in more than 22 years. The state police conduct almost all aerial medical evacuations in Maryland, and are the only such publicly run, statewide service in the country. Trooper 2, the helicopter that crashed, has routinely ranked as one of the busiest in the country in recent years.

Maryland State Police Medevac Crash Kills Four - washingtonpost.com

In my time in EMS in Maryland, I worked with the Trooper crews often. Still trying to find out who the crew members were - there's a good chance I knew some or all of them. Everyone in the public safety community in the state knew well the "flying vacuum" sound of the Dauphin helicopters MSP operates.

These folks were truly heroes, placing themselves in harm's way on a daily (even hourly) basis to help others. Trooper 2 was at one time the busiest medevac unit in the US, and there is no way to count the number of lives they saved.

Trooper 2 in happier times:



May God bless the crew and patient lost in this tragic incident, and may He bring peace to their families and colleagues.

Matt

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[JAT40]

My heart and prayers go out to the loved ones of those selfless heroes. The patient has one amazing story to tell surviving both crashes, someone is looking out for her.

[rstickle]

Thoughts and prayers go out to their families. I see them flying around all the time.

[rstickle]

Here is a link to a MSP update with the names.

Maryland State Police

[retsupt99]

Sorry to hear this, my thoughts are with their families!

[chipperi]

May God bless these angels of mercy. I was in the Baltimore County Fire Dept for 8 years and those guys and girls are the best in the world at what they do; from their police work, flying out the severely injured, to helping us out with their flir system to recover recently drowned bodies. They could land amazingly anywhere and treat and transport people we swore had little to no chance of living to University of Maryland Shock Trauma and these people often times were pieced back together and lived.