The fate of two passengers onboard a firefighting helicopter that crashed Friday morning in Utah remains unknown after more than ۲۴ hours, as one of the country’s largest wildfires continues to grow, preventing authorities from safely reaching the accident site.
The Sikorsky S-۶۴ helicopter, contracted by the US Forest Service, was responding on Friday to the Widemouth ۲ fire, a blaze sparked in late July by lightning, when it crashed in a remote area of central Utah.
Widemouth ۲ has swept through more than ۱۱۴,۶۰۰ acres (۴۶,۴۰۰ hectares) and is ۲۴% contained, as of Saturday. That figure marked a jump from early on Friday, where the fire’s scope was reported as reaching more than ۱۰۵,۰۰۰ acres, according to state data.
The chopper’s crash ignited a new blaze, state authorities said at a news conference on Friday evening. The accident site is within the fire’s perimeter.
“Ground resources attempted to respond immediately, but access to the scene was compromised by the emergent fire,” the US Forest Service wrote in a Saturday statement. “Without a safety zone, the Incident Management Team determined not to place lives at risk until the area is deemed safe.”
Federal officials have advised the public to refrain from speculating on the nature of the crash, as search-and-rescue teams wait for fire conditions to subside to safer levels.
In a Saturday daily report, however, the US National Interagency Fire Center, a coalition of state and federal agencies, said the helicopter’s “pilot and one crewmember were fatally injured”. At a Saturday morning briefing, a moment of silence was observed to honor the passengers.
The US Forest Service has declined to confirm their status.
“There have already been many false reports and rumors, and the victims deserve the highest level of respect and avoidance of speculation,” the agency wrote.
Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) were en route to Richfield, a city roughly ۱۶۰ miles (۲۵۰km) south of Salt Lake City, as of Friday. When they are able to reach the crash site, they will document the scene, before retrieving the aircraft.
The western US states have faced a deadly wildfire season. In June, three firefighters died, as they battled a blaze along the Colorado-Utah border. A fourth firefighter later died from burn injuries sustained during the emergency response.
