SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA — A REACH Air Medical Services helicopter crashed onto eastbound Highway 50 on Monday night, critically injuring the three crew members on board and shutting down a major freeway. The company confirmed that no patient was on the aircraft at the time of the crash.
The incident prompted a large-scale emergency response, and federal authorities have been notified to investigate the cause of the crash.
The Crash
The helicopter, identified by flight-tracking data as a four-year-old Airbus H130, crashed on Highway 50 near Stockton Boulevard on Monday, October 6. The aircraft appeared to have just taken off from the nearby UC Davis Medical Center when it went down.
Photos and videos from the scene showed the wreckage strewn across multiple lanes of the freeway. The Sacramento Fire Department responded to the incident and reported that all three victims had sustained critical injuries. A video from the scene captured a first responder confirming, "All three are alive."
Investigation and Response
In a statement, REACH Air Medical Services confirmed that its crew members were taken to area hospitals. "We are in the process of determining the details of this situation, as well as the condition of the REACH crew involved," the company said.
The California Highway Patrol (CHP) has secured the crash site and is working with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), who will lead the investigation into the cause. The CHP noted that the wreckage will remain on the highway until federal investigators authorize its removal, keeping the eastbound lanes closed indefinitely.
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