POMEROY — Federal investigators are working to recover a helicopter that crashed over the weekend in southeast Washington, killing one person and injuring two others.
A spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board said Monday that investigators will do a complete examination once the helicopter is moved to a secure location.
The aircraft crashed at about 2 p.m. Saturday northwest of Pomeroy in Garfield County.
The three crew members were employed by the helicopter operator, Hells Canyon Helicopter. They were flying under contract with the state Department of Fish and Wildlife to help with mule deer surveying. They have not been identified.
The state fish and wildlife department says the helicopter crew was on the first day of field work in the Blue Mountains as part of a multi-year research project to study the movement and survival of mule deer.
The helicopter crew was working with state wildlife biologists — who were on the ground — to capture and attach radio collars to mule deer does.
