Photo: Snoqualmie Pass Fire & Rescue
The Kittitas County Sheriffs Department and Snoqualmie Pass Fire and Rescue in Washington state say a medical transport helicopter crashed during a rescue on Tuesday, September 23, 2025. Details of the camper’s injuries that required air transport haven’t been shared, but according to a statement from Snoqualmie Pass Fire & Rescue, it was a “life-threatening” situation.
The incident began when family members reported that the camper had failed to return home when planned. The family provided Kittitas County Sheriffs with information on his expected location, which led them to search the Little Kachess Lake area, where he was eventually found having “sustained a significant accidental cut and was experiencing serious bleeding.” Kittitas County Sheriffs called medics to the scene, who determined the severity of the injuries and called for the urgent medical transport. Deputies chose a “hasty” landing area, they say.
“Snoqualmie Pass Fire and Rescue Firefighter/EMT’s arrived first and determined the patient had life threatening injuries and air medical transport helicopter was dispatched to a landing zone near Lake Kachess,” a statement from the Kittitas County Sheriffs office reads. “During the attempted landing the helicopter crashed onto its side. Crews from Snoqualmie Pass Fire and Rescue and Kittitas County Sheriff Deputies immediately moved to action, helping extract the crew from the helicopter and extinguished the resulting fire. The flight crew was not injured, and medics transported the injured camper to the hospital.”
Snoqualmie Pass Fire and Rescue shared images of the crashed helicopter on social media, and Kittitas County Sheriff says the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board have sent investigators to determine the cause of the accident.
