Updated at 10:45 a.m., Monday, June 4, 2001

Hiker retrieved after rescue chopper goes down

By Brandon Masuoka
Advertiser Staff Writer

The crew of a rescue helicopter that crashed on Kaua'i yesterday wait to be airlifted. The three firefighters and the pilot were only slightly injured. Coast Guard photo

A day after a rescue helicopter crash, the Kaua'i Fire Department returned today to airlift an injured hiker out of the Hanakoa Coast, officials said.

The helicopter rescue mission was completed at about 7 a.m. and the woman was taken to Wilcox Memorial Hospital for treatment for a possible broken ankle, said battalion chief Bob Kaden.

Yesterday afternoon, a helicopter carrying a pilot and three Kauai Fire Department crew members trying to rescue the hiker made a forced landing near Hanalei Bay.

The injured crew members were treated and released at Wilcox hospital.

Kaden said the Kaua'i Fire Department received the call at about 4 p.m. yesterday and dispatched a chartered helicopter to the scene. The chopper lost power en route and the pilot was forced to land near Hanalei Bay.

"Our personnel thought the pilot did an outstanding job of bringing in the powerless helicopter," Kaden said. "The guys on board said it lasted about 20 seconds. I heard it was about 500 feet up. They said they thought they were going to die."

Kaden said the helicopter has a broken tail and ruptured fuel tank, among other damage. The cause of the power loss is still under investigation, he said.