The Transportation Safety Board won’t be conducting a further investigation of a B.C. Air Ambulance helicopter that clipped a telephone line in Pitt Meadows 10 days ago.
The helicopter was forced to make an emergency landing in a nearby field after its tail rotor shredded the overhead wire while attempting to takeoff from McNeil Road.
TSB has conducted an initial investigation of the mishap, and found no cause to proceed with a wider one.
Investigator Damien Lawson said the accident comes with operating a helicopter in tight quarters. Air ambulance pilots are among the most skilled and experienced in the province, he noted, but their job requires them to land in less than ideal conditions.
“In life and death situations, they take risks, but obviously they try to mitigate those risks,” he said. “We don’t second guess a pilot’s decision-making.”
A video of the helicopter striking the telephone line has been uploaded to YouTube, receiving close to 13,000 hits by Thursday afternoon.
In the video, the helicopter can be seen attempting to take off from McNeil Road. The helicopter turns to the left as it ascends, causing the tail rotor to strike the telephone line, shredding the wire to pieces. The helicopter immediately lands in field next to the road, separated by a deep ditch.
“It was unfortunate the pilot didn’t realize the rotor was as close to the telephone lines as it was,” said Lawson. “It’s a risk that comes with operating in tight quarters.”
Dan Froom, executive director of the B.C. Ambulance Service, said the helicopter spent the night in the field before being checked out to see if it was safe to fly.
The helicopter was on scene to pick up a man who had fallen 4.5 metres into a water-filled ditch from the bucket of a tractor while pruning trees. Firefighters transferred the injured man into a waiting ambulance, which transported him to hospital via road.