Fw: OH-Medical Transport Helicopter Crash Kills Two Flight Crew Members

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Helicopter crashes into hospital courtyard, killing two

By JOE MILICIA

The Associated Press

1/18/02 8:59 AM

CLEVELAND (AP) -- A medical helicopter crashed and exploded just after

taking

off from the roof of a hospital early Friday, killing two of the three

people

on board, police said.

The helicopter crashed into a courtyard at University Hospitals of

Cleveland,

about four miles east of downtown, shortly before 12:30 a.m., said

Sandstrom, a hospital spokesman.

It landed on an unoccupied car and broke into pieces, with only the tail

recognizable in the twisted wreckage. No one on the ground was injured.

A student at nearby Case Western Reserve University said she frequently

hears

helicopters fly to and from the hospital, but could tell this time that

something was wrong.

" It sounded a lot louder than usual and I heard a couple booms, " said

Natatia

Lin, 24, who was washing dishes at the time of the crash. " I looked out the

window and I saw flames in front of the building, and I saw the last

explosion, which was huge.

" The smoke just engulfed the whole building -- it was seven stories high.

People started running out of the hospital. "

The State Highway Patrol identified the victims as pilot R. Spence,

51, of Marshallville, and flight nurse Conti, 38, of Wickliffe.

A medic, Joe Paoletta, 29, of Brecksville, was taken to the burn unit of

MetroHealth Medical Center. Cleveland Police Lt. Sharon MacKay said he

suffered burns over 25 percent his body and was in serious condition.

The exterior of the hospital near its rooftop helipad -- 12 stories up --

was

damaged. A patient room window on the ninth floor was shattered, said Eileen

Korey, a hospital spokeswoman.

The hospital's emergency room was closed until 4 a.m. and 16 patients from

different floors were temporarily evacuated from their rooms as a

precaution,

Korey said. No smoke or flames got inside the building.

" At no time were any patients in danger, " Korey said.

Korey said she did not know what caused the crash, but said the helicopter

was heading to another hospital to pick up a patient for transport to a

third

hospital. She did not know if the patient was later picked up by another

helicopter.

University Hospital also is near mid-high rise office and medical buildings,

in addition to Case Western.

Patient Chandler said he watched the crash from a ninth-floor window

in

the hospital.

" I heard it sputter first, and it started losing altitude, then I heard

'Boom! " ' he said.

Chandler, 37, of Cleveland, said he ran outside into 20-degree weather

because he was scared. A winter coat covered his hospital pajamas and the

two

broken arms he suffered in a motorcycle accident.

" I'm not going back up there until it's safe, " he said. " The first thing I

thought is they were trying to crash into the hospital. "

Fetzer, a nursing student who works at the hospital and lives nearby,

saw flames shoot into the air after the helicopter slammed into the ground.

" I heard and felt the first explosion and saw the fire and couldn't believe

it, " she said.

Lin said the explosion shook her house, which sits about 300 feet from the

hospital.

The helicopter, built in 1984, was owned by Pittsburgh-based CJ Systems

Aviation Group, which has a contract with the hospital, Korey said.

The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board

are investigating.

©2001 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be

published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Cleveland, January 18, 2002: At approximately 12:24 a.m. today, a

University MedEvac medical transport helicopter crashed moments

after take-off from the landing pad atop University Hospitals of

Cleveland's Lerner Tower. The pilot and the flight nurse were killed,

and

the flight paramedic was injured. There were no patients aboard the

flight. The BK-117 twin-engine helicopter, owned and operated by CJ

Systems

Aviation Group based in Pittsburgh, was departing on a patient transfer

mission to pick up a patient at LakeWest Hospital in Lake County.

Killed in the crash were CJ Systems pilot Spence, 51, of

Marshallville, and flight nurse Conti, 38, of Wickliffe. The

only survivor was flight paramedic, Joe Paoletta, 29, who was treated

for

burns in University Hospitals' emergency department before being

transferred to MetroHealth Medical Center's burn unit.

As a precautionary measure, some patients in Lerner Tower were moved to

other rooms in the hospital until it was determined that there was no

threat to patient safety. Hospital operations continued as normal,

though

the emergency department was temporarily closed to new patients. There

was

minor exterior damage to the top of the twelve-story tower, including

one

broken window.

The helipad remains closed while investigators from the Federation

Aviation

Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board examine the

crash site. A temporary landing pad has been opened on the hospital

campus.

" Our deepest sympathies go out to the families and friends of the flight

crew, " said Farah M. Walters, President and Chief Executive Officer of

University Hospitals of Cleveland and University Hospitals Health

System.

" They were an integral part of the hospital family and will be greatly

missed. "

The cause of the accident remains under investigation. MedEvac flight

ambulance services are run by CJ Systems Aviation Group, based in

Pittsburgh, which is one of the largest medical air transport services

in

the nation and has an outstanding safety record in the industry.

MedEvac Helicopter Crashes, Killing 2

Medic Jumps From Falling Chopper

UPDATED: 9:46 a.m. EST January 18, 2002

CLEVELAND -- A medical helicopter crashed into a ball of flames in

Cleveland,

killing two people.

The chopper taking off from University Hospitals just after midnight hit one

of the buildings and caught fire.

Amazingly, a third person on board, 29-year-old medic Joe Paoletta of

Brecksville, jumped from the helicopter as it was falling. He is the only

survivor. He was transferred to MetroHealth Medical Center, where he's

listed

in fair condition with burns over 25 percent of his body.

The flight nurse, Conti, 38, of Wickliffe, and pilot Spence,

51, or Marshallville, died in the crash. The hospital said that Spence was a

former National Guard pilot.

Another helicopter pilot, Capt. Thom Bencin, told NewsChannel5 that the

MedEvac No. 8 was on its way to pick up a patient. It had trouble getting

off

the helipad and it clipped the 10th floor of Lerner Tower.

Patients inside the hospital were not affected.

Witnesses said they heard two loud booms and saw huge flames shooting into

the air.

" There was an explosion and sparks everywhere, " one witness said.

The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board

are on their way to Cleveland to investigate what happened.

The helicopter was owned and operated by a Pittsburgh company, Corporate Jet

Systems.

The hospital is fully operational Friday.

Copyright 2002 by NewsNet5. All rights reserved. This material may not be

published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Helicopter crashes taking off from hospital

Video: Medic jumps from chopper as it crashes

Video: Pilot talks about possible causes

January 18, 2002

CLEVELAND -- A helicopter crashed after taking off from the roof of a

Cleveland hospital early Friday morning, killing two of the three people on

board.

Sandstrom, spokesman for University Hospitals of Cleveland, says the

helicopter crashed into a courtyard about 12:30 a.m.

The victims have been identified as 51-year-old pilot R. Spence of

Marshallville and 38-year-old flight nurse Conti of Wickliffe. The

injured man is 29-year-old medic Joe Paoletta of Brecksville.

The chopper landed on an unoccupied car and broke into pieces, with only the

tail recognizable in the twisted wreckage. No one on the ground was injured.

One witness told Channel 3 News that the crash shook her apartment building

-- located across from where the helicopter landed.

The exterior of the hospital near its rooftop helipad -- 12 stories up --

was

damaged during the crash.

Hospital spokeswoman Eileen Korey said the helicopter was heading to another

hospital to pick up a patient for transport to a third hospital.

The helicopter was a MBB-Kawasaki BK-117, commonly used by hospitals. The

pilot, Spence, was a former military helicopter pilot

The National Transportation Safety Board says it may have a preliminary

report in two weeks, with a full report in six weeks.

Survivor crawled out of wreckage

The medic on board the helicopter that crashed Friday was 29-year-old ph

Paoletto of Brecksville.

He managed to crawl out of the wreckage after it hit the ground.

He's in serious condition in MetroHealth Medical Center' s burn unit with

burns over 25 percent of his lower body.

Paoletto is also a firefighter and paramedic for Cleveland Heights for the

last four years.

Acting Chief Mohr has great praise for Paoletto's work.

" Joe is really a very fine firefighter and paramedic for us and the fact

that

Joe would pursue the paramedic work on a part time basis outside of work

just

shows how much enjoys that and enjoys helping people, " Mohr says.

Paoletto has a wife and two daughters. Firefighters say his wife is five

months pregnant

<A

HREF= " http://www.cleveland.com/news/index.ssf?/news/more/ap/01crash18.html " >

cleveland.com: News</A>

<A HREF= " http://www.newsnet5.com/news/1195839/detail.html " >newsnet5.com -

News - MedEvac Helicopter Crashes, Killing 2</A>

<A

HREF= " http://www.wkyc.com/news/morelocal/cleveland/020118helicopter.ssf " >

Helicopter crashes taking off from hospital | wkyc.com</A>

<A HREF= " http://www.woio.com/Global/story.asp?S=627690 & nav=0rd10zsM6nFH " >

Helicopter Crashes Into Hospital Courtyard, Killing 2</A>

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