3 killed after firefighting helicopters collide while battling Southern California blaze, officials say

Three people were killed after two helicopters collided while fighting a blaze in the Southern California community of Cabazon, officials announced late Sunday night.

“The first helicopter was able to land safely nearby. Unfortunately, the second helicopter crashed and tragically all three members perished,” CalFire Southern Region Chief David Fulcher said in a news conference.

The victims included a contracted pilot, a CalFire division chief and a CalFire captain, Fulcher said.

The helicopters were among six aircraft responding to the Broadway Fire, which began Sunday after a structure fire spread to nearby vegetation, according to the region chief.

The Broadway Fire covered about three acres when firefighters responded around 6 p.m., according to a post on a joint Twitter account for CalFire and the Riverside County Fire Department. By shortly after 7 p.m., the “forward rate of spread” had been stopped, the agencies said.

A second four-acre fire was ignited by the helicopter crash but has since been extinguished, Fulcher said.

The deaths are the first of California’s 2023 fire season, according to data from CalFire.

“I would like to express our deepest sympathies and sorrow to the families and coworkers of the personnel,” Fulcher said. “This was a tragic loss for the community, the fire service community and CalFire and Riverside County Fire Department.”

The crash will be investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board, Fulcher said. CNN has sought comment from the agency.

Cabazon is a community in Riverside County and lies about 90 miles east of Los Angeles.