5 dead, including patient, in Nevada medical flight crash

STAGECOACH, Nevada (AP) – All five people aboard a medical transport flight, including a patient, died in a plane crash Friday night in northern Nevada, according to an air ambulance company.

The Lyon County Sheriff’s Office said authorities began receiving calls about the crash near Stagecoach, Nevada, around 9:15 pm and found the wreckage two hours later. The stagecoach is about 72 kilometers southeast of Reno.

Care Flight, which provides air and helicopter ambulance service, said those killed included the pilot, a flight nurse, a flight paramedic, a patient and a member of the patient’s family.

“We are heartbroken to report that we have now received confirmation from the Central Lyon County Fire Department that none of the five people on board survived,” the airline said in a statement, adding that it was halting flights to focus on helping. response agencies, staff members and families.

The National Transportation Safety Board said Saturday morning on Twitter that it is sending a team of seven investigators to the crash site.

The NTSB identified the aircraft as a Pilatus PC-12 plane. Federal Aviation Administration records show that the aircraft was manufactured in 2002.

The accident occurred amid a winter storm warning issued by the National Weather Service in Reno for large areas of Nevada, including parts of Lyon County.

The Weather Service said it expected heavy snow, wind gusts of up to 105km/h and periods of mild temperatures between 4am on Friday and 4am on Sunday.