LIHU'E, Kaua'i — A helicopter crashed or made a hard landing at 11:45 a.m. today at Polihale State Park on Kaua'i's west side, a witness and a park official said.

"I understand it was at least a hard landing," said Dan Quinn, parks administrator with the state Department of Land and Natural Resources.

Inter-Island Helicopters was doing contract work for the DLNR by removing rubbish from the Kalalau Valley, Quinn said. Rubbish and illegal camp sites are cleared several times a year using helicopters, he said.

Kekaha resident Patrick Morrah said he had been at Polihale "enjoying the beautiful day" and watching a red Inter-Island helicopter carrying loads of debris from the Kalalau Valley to a staging area in the park, where trucks took the debris away.

"I saw them make about five trips," with two helicopters carrying loads in net slings, Morrah said.

At 11:45, the red helicopter was "flying low along the coast with a load of stuff ... when the engine went 'whoop' and the motor quit. There was a big belch of smoke out of the back," and Morrah heard the helicopter go down about 120 feet from him.

He estimated the helicopter was 30 feet above the ground when it started to go down. He said he went through foliage to see the helicopter and the pilot, who appeared unharmed and was yelling at a tourist not to take pictures.

The helicopter didn't catch on fire, but the back of it did seem to be ripped off by the crash, Morrah said.

The remaining Inter-Island helicopter continued to carry loads out of Kalalau this afternoon, Quinn said.

"Unfortunately, we have to do this regularly" because people who hike or boat to the remote North Shore valley don't take away all their rubbish, Quinn said.

Other than by helicopter, the valley is reachable only by boat, which during high surf, or by an 11-mile hike. The DLNR issues permits for camping in the valley, but also fines illegal campers and removes their campsites, Quinn said.

A woman who answered the telephone at Inter-Island Helicopters this afternoon said she couldn't confirm whether a crash had occurred. She said the head of the company was "in an area where the cell phone doesn't catch." Other messages left with the company were not returned this afternoon.

The Kauai Fire Department did not receive a call for assistance, Battalion Chief Shawn Hosaka said. "They might have just had a hard landing," he said.