Helicopter pilot dies battling Oregon wildfire

Associated Press

THE DALLES, Ore. – A helicopter pilot who died late Monday while fighting a wildfire in Oregon’s Mount Hood National Forest worked for a private company based in Bozeman that was under contract for aerial firefighting with the U.S. Forest Service, authorities said Tuesday.

“This kind of news is never easy,” said Suzanne Flory, a spokeswoman for the Forest Service. “We have very limited information at this time, but an investigation has started and it is ongoing.”

Authorities declined to release the name of the man because authorities were still notifying his family.

The pilot had been doing bucket drops on the fire for several days with a Type 1 K-MAX helicopter before the crash, said Brian Goff, the Forest Service incident commander for the White River Fire.

The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating.

The White River Fire is 15% contained and is a little more than 1,200 acres in size. It’s been fueled by gusty winds and is burning in steep, densely forested terrain about 90 miles east of Portland.

It’s one of 10 major wildfires burning in the Pacific Northwest and is the No. 2 priority for fire crews in the region.

About 5,000 of the 28,000 firefighters deployed on wildfires nationwide are on blazes in the Pacific Northwest, said John Giller, with the Forest Service’s Pacific Northwest region.