Military helicopter crashes near Washington base

By Sarah Davis, CNN

(CNN) — A Black Hawk helicopter carrying four service members crashed near a military base in Washington state late Wednesday evening, a spokesperson from the US Army Special Operations Command Public Affairs Office told CNN.

“The U.S. Army Special Operations Command confirms that four servicemembers assigned to the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) were on board an MH-60 Black Hawk helicopter involved in an aviation mishap in a rural area near Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, Sept 17,” the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson said “the cause of the mishap is under investigation.”

A US Army official on Wednesday did not say whether there were any casualties, adding that the incident “remains a developing situation, and no additional details are available at this time.”

In a social media statement early Thursday morning, the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office said that the adjoining county’s deputies “have been dispatched to reports of a possible helicopter crash in the Summit Lake area. Deputies have located what is believed to be the scene.” Summit Lake is located west of the base in an area southwest of Tacoma.

“We have been advised that the military lost contact with a helicopter in the area, and we are working closely with JBLM to deploy any resources needed to assist,” the office wrote.

CNN has reached out to JBLM for comment.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

The-CNN-Wire
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