2:50 p.m. Thursday: The Fresno County Sheriff’s Department unveiled more key points about the operation on the body of Michael John Fournier, who died Wednesday when his helicopter crashed while battling a wildfire near Coalinga.
The Search and Rescue Team of the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department sent a team of 15 people to the rugged terrain of the turn of fate after receiving the initial call Wednesday morning about the incident, Sheriff Tony Botti’s spokesman said.
The rescue team brought five Jeeps to the site, about 10 miles south of the town of Coalinga in Fresno County west of Highway 33, Botti said.
At approximately 4:30 p.m., the Jeeps crossed a line where a chimney had crossed a mountainous, smoke-filled terrain to get closer to the crooked place of fate, Botti said.
The team then had to walk a few hundred meters across a steep hill with loose ground to succeed in the helicopter, Botti said.
The team arrived at the wreckage of the plane just before 8 p.m. and discovered Fournier’s body, which they covered with an American flag as they took him back to the Jeeps,” Botti said.
Once the Jeep caravan returned to the main road, the rescue team encountered the Fresno County coroner’s transport van around the afternoon, Botti said.
Fournier’s body was then taken to the Fresno County Coroner’s office, where his identity was shown and reported to his relatives, Botti said.
Update 10:35 a.m. Thursday: The Fresno County Sheriff’s Department knew the helicopter pilot was killed in a chimney in Coalinga on Wednesday as Michael John Fournier, 52, of Rancho Cucamonga.
The Hills fire, which has been burning for 4 days, is concentrated around Highway 33 and Sutter Avenue, south of Coalinga in Fresno County, Cal Fire reports.
The 1,500-acre fireplace is 35% contained, Cal Fire reports.
Fournier works with Fillmore-based Guardian Helicopters, which had a contract with the state-owned chimney company to provide emergency services, said Zoe Keliher, a researcher at the National Transportation Safety Board.
Fournier’s death is not the only death similar to California’s wildfires that threatened thousands of homes.
A Pacific Gas-Electric app worker died while attending a chimney in the Vacaville domain between San Francisco and Sacramento, but the cases were unclear. The app showed death but did not give details, KPIX-TV reported.
The employee was discovered in a vehicle and cpR was practiced, but was pronounced dead in a hospital, a member of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.
The Associated Press contributed to the report.
Original tale five p.m. Wednesday, August 19: A pilot fighting the Hills chimney near Coalinga died Wednesday when his helicopter crashed.
The location of the turn of fate in a remote domain southwest of the chimney caused a chimney that then merged with the chimney of the hills, the Fresno tv channels KSEE / KGPE reported.
The Bell UH-1 helicopter crashed 18 kilometers south of New Coalinga Municipal Airport at 10 a.m., Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said.
The search and rescue team of the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department was promptly sent to the crash crash crash, Sheriff Tony Botti’s spokesman said.
California Fire Tracking: Map tracks existing wildfires in the state on time
The helicopter belongs to a company guilty of making water drops in the Hills chimney that burns in the hills near Coalinga, Cal Fire spokesman Seth Brown said.
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will conduct an investigation. The NTSB will be the likely cause of the accident.
The Hills fire, which has been burning for 3 days, is concentrated around Highway 33 and Sutter Avenue, south of Coalinga in Fresno County, Cal Fire reports.
The 1,500-acre fireplace is 35% contained, Cal Fire reports. It’s one of dozens of chimneys that burn thousands of acres across the state.
‘Historic Lightning Siege’: Thousands flee as a lot of wildfires erupts in California
Governor Gavin Newsom blamed “the ordinary weather we know and all the rays” of 367 known chimneys, adding 23 primary fireplaces or groups of chimneys. He said the state had recorded nearly 11,000 lightning movements in 72 hours.
Police and firefighters went door-to-door before Wednesday in a frantic race to warn citizens to evacuate when the chimney invaded Vacaville, a city of approximately 100,000 more people between San Francisco and Sacramento. At least 50 structures were destroyed, adding some houses and 50 damaged.
James Ward covers entertainment, news, sports and lifestyles for Visalia Times-Delta / Tulare Advance-Register. Follow him on Twitter. Receive alerts and updates on everything similar to Tulare County for as little as $1 per month. Subscribe today.