A large wildfire in Utah is hampering access to the site where a firefighting helicopter crashed, delaying search and rescue efforts. This was reported by infohub.kz.
The firefighting helicopter crashed on Friday morning, and the fate of the two people on board remains unknown, as one of the largest wildfires in the country continues to burn, preventing rescuers from safely reaching the crash site.
The Sikorsky S-64 helicopter, contracted by the US Forest Service, crashed on Friday while responding to the Widemouth 2 fire, a blaze sparked by lightning in late July in a remote area of central Utah.
As of Saturday, the Widemouth 2 fire has scorched more than 114,600 acres (46,400 hectares) and is 24% contained. This marks a significant increase from the more than 105,000 acres reported early Friday.
The crash ignited a new fire, state authorities said at a news conference on Friday evening. The accident site is within the fire's perimeter.
"Ground resources attempted to respond immediately, but access to the scene was compromised by the emergent fire," the US Forest Service wrote in a Saturday statement. "Without a safety zone, the Incident Management Team determined not to place lives at risk until the area is deemed safe."
Federal officials have advised the public to refrain from speculating on the cause of the crash, as search-and-rescue teams wait for fire conditions to subside to safer levels.
However, in a Saturday daily report, the US National Interagency Fire Center stated that the helicopter's "pilot and one crewmember were fatally injured." At a Saturday morning briefing, a moment of silence was observed to honor the victims.
The US Forest Service has declined to confirm their status. "There have already been many false reports and rumors, and the victims deserve the highest level of respect and avoidance of speculation," the agency wrote.
Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) were en route to Richfield, a city roughly 160 miles (250 km) south of Salt Lake City, as of Friday. When they are able to reach the crash site, they will document the scene before retrieving the aircraft.
The western US states have faced a deadly wildfire season. In June, three firefighters died battling a blaze along the Colorado-Utah border. A fourth firefighter later died from burn injuries sustained during the emergency response.