The pilot of a firefighter helping fight the Colorado wildfire was making a final pass over the fire Tuesday when plane crashed, killed him, the officials said.
Army and Air Force veteran Mark Thor Olsson died after a CO Fire Aviation, CO Fire Aviation, Air Tractor AT-802A crashed. said Wednesday.
The Larimer County Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday it was conducting drops on the Kruger Rock Fire, burning in an area very dangerous for firefighters, near the town of Estes Park in the mountains west of Loveland, when the plane crashed. .
The sheriff’s office said the plane made a water drop and returned with a suppressor when it crashed.
“The pilot told ground resources that it was turbulent on the fire, conditions were not ideal for a drop to be made, and that he was about to make another pass and then return to Loveland,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement. “Moments later, at about 6:37 a.m., ground resources heard the sound of the plane crash.”
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.
The Kruger Rock fire broke out on Tuesday morning southeast of Estes Park, a town of about 6,000 people about 25 miles west of Loveland. By Wednesday evening, the fire had spread to about 145 acres and 40 per cent had been brought under control.
The sheriff’s office said a forest fire started after a tree fell on a power line in strong winds. There is no report of any structure being damaged.
Some evacuation orders were voluntarily lifted or downgraded on Wednesday, and the US Forest Service said cooler weather and light winds were helping firefighters.
Olson was flying the single-engine aircraft after nightfall using night-vision goggles, Denver’s NBC affiliate Kusa told, Olson was the only person on board.
CO Fire Aviation said Olson had more than 8,000 flight hours and 1,000 hours of night-vision flight. The company said it was cooperating fully with investigators and was deeply saddened by their loss.
Colorado had the worst wildfire season in history last year. The state’s three largest wildfires occurred last year, including the Cameron Peak Fire in Larimer County, the largest ever recorded at 208,913 acres.