Occupants of downed Sheriff's helicopter transported to hospital, expected to recover

A sheriff's helicopter went down Saturday near the San Gabriel Dam in the Angeles National Forest near Azusa injuring five people aboard, one critically.

A sixth occupant, a UCLA doctor, was also onboard for a ride-along and was uninjured in the accident. The five deputies were rushed to a nearby trauma center where they are all expected to recover.

Asked by CBSLA to describe what happened after the crash, Sheriff Villanueva said:

"There's a range of injuries, and actually some of the crew, the paramedics were involved in extricating the crew, the pilot and the copilot because that's a very more confined space. The range of injuries, you know there's obviously some ... they're pretty banged up, some of them. I'll leave it at that there's some fractures and broken ribs and things of that nature, but thankfully, nothing that is life threatening at this time."

The crash occurred just before 5 p.m. off San Gabriel Canyon Road (39) near Mile Marker 21.7 and the San Gabriel Dam, said Deputy Alejandra Parra of the Sheriff's Information Bureau.

The Sheriff's Special Enforcement Bureau were responding to a vehicle crash up in the mountains when the chopper accident occurred. The victim involved in the original call for help was taken by ambulance to the hospital and sustained minor injuries.

The cause of the helicopter crash was not immediately available, Parra said.

Officials with the the National Transportation Safety Board have said they are investigating the cause of the crash.

(© Copyright 2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)