Nov 11, 2008 5:41 pm US/Eastern
News Chopper Forced To Make "Hard Landing"
2 On Board Hospitalized With Minor Injuries
SKY 12 Is Leased By CBS Affiliate WPEC In West Palm Beach
BOYNTON BEACH (CBS4) ―
"The pilot did a hell of a job bringing it in, I'll say that much for him."
Frank Warren watched as WPEC's Sky 12 chopper made a 'hard landing' in Boynton Beach Tuesday morning. It happened just after 6 a.m. as traffic reporter Paul Cavanaugh was getting read to do his morning reports.
"It was just brace your selves and get ready to see what happens," said Cavanaugh.
Pilot Takayuki Tanaka landed the Bell Ranger III on its belly west of I-95 in the Aspen Industrial Park at 1000 Industrial Avenue, the craft's tail snapped off on impact.
"Came in with a controlled landing, it looked like the (rear) rotor shaft snapped on it or something because he was in 'free wheel' mode when it came down," said Warren.
Bill told CBS4's Ted Scouten he remembers seeing the helicopter coming down, but he doesn't remember hearing it.
"It didn't sound right, it wasn't running correctly," said Bill, "You know you get that 'bup, buyp, bup' sound. It wasn't doing that, it wasn't running."
The chopper's pilot, Takayuki Tanaka, radioed that he was having engine trouble just before the Bell helicopter came down.
"I could see the warning light go on and all of the sudden it was instantaneously that we had lost power," recalled Cavanaugh. "All we had as an option to do at that point was find a place to land."
Cavanaugh said it was still dark when the craft went down. He said as it was about to touch down, the pilot noticed they were surrounded by potentially deadly power lines. They had to maneuver fast with not power. Stephanie Slater with the Boynton Beach Police Department said the pilot did an amazing job.
"It's an industrial area and there are power lines everywhere," said Slater. "He managed to set it down without touching anything."
Fire rescue crews arrived on the scene quickly and covered the crash scene with foam in order to prevent a possible fire.
Cavanaugh and the pilot were checked out at Bethesda Medical Center in Boynton Beach and released. Cavanaugh said he's in good shape; he's got '10 fingers and 10 toes'.
He knows all too well about chopper crashes; he's already experienced a serious crash.
"Maybe I'm a cat and I still have six lives to go," said Cavanaugh, "I'm hoping."
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Body Found Under Hialeah Home
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