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Editor: James T. Crouse
Profession: Aviation Accident Attorney

Category: Helicopter Crashes

The American Eurocopter AS350B2 took off from Charleston around 11 p.m. after having dropped off a patient around 9:35 p.m. The helicopter was heading northeast to Conway at the time of the crash. The last radio contact was 11:05 p.m. and the helicopter crashed at about 11:30 p.m. It is not known if a thunderstorm which moved through the area a little before the crash was a contributing factor.

According to NTSB records, a similar helicopter operated by Omniflight was damaged on July 2 when it struck steel poles adjacent to the helipad at a hospital. No one was injured in that incident.

In 2006, the NTSB issued a special report concerning issues involved in the increased number of emergency helicopter crashes. According to USA Today, earlier this month NTSB officials urged the government to impose stricter controls on emergency helicopter operators because of last year's 35 deaths between December 2007 and October 2008 - a record number. Since last October there have been three accidents with no deaths until the South Carolina Crash on Friday.