On Tuesday, a medical helicopter on its way to a sick child crashed near Somerville, Tennessee, killing the pilot and two workers from the Memphis children’s hospital. The team was set to pick up a boy with renal failure from a hospital in Bolivar, and transport him to Le Bonheur, but the helicopter did not make it to its destination, said Le Bonheur CEO Meri Armour. Officials still are not sure what caused the crash, but the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board will be investigating soon.
The three people that were killed were Carrie Barlow, 43, Denise Adams, 43, and pilot Charles Smith, 47. “They have taken care of so many kids in their short lives,” Dr. Jay Pershad, medical director of Le Bonheur’s air transport program, said Tuesday. “I can’t tell you how incredibly difficult it is for the entire team.”
Hospital Wing, the service that ran the helicopter, has now seen two crashes in three years. Company CEO Bill Conway commented: “It saddens me more than you can know. All three of these crew members were personal friends of mine.”
