Helicopter Crashes Near Highway In Idaho; Pilot, Passenger Injured

Two men were seriously injured after a helicopter crashed Tuesday (June 23) in Rathdrum, Idaho.

According to reports, the small passenger helicopter, listed as an Enstrom 280, crashed in the northwest corner of Highway 41 and Wyoming Avenue. Officials from the Kootenai Fire and Northern Lake firefighters responded to the scene to find the aircraft engulfed in flames.

Both men suffered injuries from the crash. Good Samaritans who witnessed the crash rushed to the site and provided initial aid before the victims were rushed to Kootenai Health hospital. Their injuries were reported to be non-life-threatening.

The identities of the pilot and the passenger, who sustained injuries, were not revealed.

According to the witnesses, they noticed the helicopter in "obvious trouble" just before the crash. The helicopter hit the ground hard before bursting into flames.

A preliminary investigation revealed that the helicopter crashed into a field from a low-level altitude. According to the investigators, alcohol, and drugs do not appear to be a factor leading to the crash.

The Federal Aviation Administration was notified and the agency was also investigating the incident.

It was reported that the helicopter was registered to an unidentified individual in Spokane, Washington. The exact reason for the crash was not known.

According to the Kootenai County Sheriff's department, the traffic in the area was blocked after the crash.

Fire crews report that the crash could impact the power supply in the area.

This was an ongoing investigation and no further details were available at the time.

This incident comes almost a month after a single-engine 1961 Beechcraft 35-A33 plane that took off from Columbus, crashed in eastern Ohio, leaving the pilot in a critical condition. The pilot, identified as 54-year-old Paul Emaus, of Hudsonville, Michigan, was extracted from the plane and flown to the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center for treatment. He was the only occupant at the time of the crash.