1 dead in Greenville helicopter crash, another in critical condition

Jun. 7—One person was killed and another person critically injured in a Tuesday morning helicopter crash in Greenville.

"At 9:40 a.m. this morning, Darke County Sheriff's Office received a 911 call reporting helicopter crash on the 5000 block of Hogpath Road here in Darke County, south and little bit east of Greenville, Ohio," Sheriff Mark Whittaker said.

When deputies arrived, they found two people trapped in a helicopter that was on fire, Whittaker said. Bystanders and deputies worked together to free the victims from the wreckage.

"It was through heroic efforts of deputies who arrived on scene as well as some bystanders who were working hard," Whittaker said. "They were using buckets of water from a nearby house and fire extinguishers, trying to beat back the flames while they tried to get the one occupant out."

They were able to extract one of occupants who was in critical condition and transported by CareFlight to Miami Valley Hospital, Whittaker said.

The second occupant of the helicopter was pronounced deceased at the scene.

The helicopter is local to Darke County and the sheriff's office is familiar with it, but Whittaker did not release any other information regarding where it was traveling to or why it was in the air.

The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration will handle the investigation into the crash. Both agencies have been notified and are expected to respond to the scene today.

This section of Hogpath Road will be closed for the entire day and maybe into the evening, Whittaker said.

In addition to sheriff's deputies fire and rescue crews from Greenville, Greenville Twp., New Madison and Arcanum also responded to the crash.

We are working to learn more and will update this story as details are available.