| Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
Military helicopter crashes in Mendon, killing 3
The accident was reported shortly after 6:30 pm in a field near West Bloomfield Road, between Cheese Factory and Boughton Hill roads, southeast of Mendon Ponds Park.
Tina MacIntyre-Yee, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
MENDON, NY – Three soldiers died in a helicopter crash in Mendon on Wednesday night, according to the New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs.
Authorities said a New York Army National Guard UH-60 medical evacuation helicopter, based at the Army Aviation Support Center at Greater Rochester International Airport, crashed during a routine training mission.
The accident was reported shortly after 6:30 pm in a field near West Bloomfield Road, between Cheese Factory and Boughton Hill roads, southeast of Mendon Ponds Park.
A source familiar with the incident said the three soldiers killed were men. Their families were being informed.
“This is a very, very heavy burden for all of us,” Monroe County Sheriff Todd Baxter told a news conference on Wednesday night. “These are our freedom providers … just showing again that freedom is not free. We have lost three great Americans today in the service of our country.”
According to preliminary reports from 911, “there were calls for engine sounds and the aircraft was flying very low, lower than normal,” said Baxter.
Shortly afterwards, there were reports of an accident.
Baxter said the authorities were in contact with the control tower at Greater Rochester International Airport, but did not analyze whether people on board the helicopter were communicating with anyone in the tower at the time of the accident.
He said he did not know the helicopter’s flight plan, but officials are working to “identify the aircraft’s route and what the wreckage looks like.”
The New York National Guard is on its way to Mendon and will conduct a joint investigation, together with the Federal Aviation Administration, Baxter said. MPs will complete a preliminary investigation of the accident and hope to stay overnight and on Thursday.
The aircraft was assigned to Company C of the 1st Battalion, 171st General Support Aviation Battalion, according to the New York State Military and Naval Affairs Division.
“This is a very close-knit unit,” said Baxter, adding that many people and family members are responding to the National Guard Center at the back of the airport.
“I am devastated by the news tonight of a New York Army National Guard helicopter crash in Mendon City, which killed three of New York’s bravest during a training mission,” said Governor Andrew Cuomo late on Thursday. Wednesday.
“The members of the National Guard are our citizen soldiers who serve and protect voluntarily here and abroad, and extend prayers and condolences from all New Yorkers to the family, loved ones and fellow soldiers of these honorable heroes that we will never forget,” he said.
Cuomo said he is directing the flags of all buildings in the state to be reduced to half an employee on Thursday.
“I am heartbroken by the news that three of the brave soldiers of the New York Army National Guard died in a helicopter accident during a training mission,” US Sen. Charles Schumer, D-NY “. These National Guard members responded to the call to help and serve their fellow New Yorkers and their country, and their sacrifices will never be forgotten. I send my deepest condolences to the loved ones of the dead soldiers and to the entire community of Monroe County. “
A New York State Police helicopter helped in the search for any potential survivors, hovering over the crash site. The wreckage stretches “beyond what I would describe as a few blocks from the city,” about hundreds of meters in each direction from the crash site, Baxter said.
Mendon’s fire chief, Bill Kessler, said the helicopter was on fire when first aid arrived on the scene. The airport fire department was also called to the scene to extinguish the fire, he said.
Although there are houses close to the crash site, Baxter said no buildings were hit.
West Bloomfield Road, between Cheese Factory and Boughton Hill, was closed while authorities investigated the site. The road will be closed at least until noon on Thursday.