Two die, helicopter crashes into the water in boat rescue
Chris Durant and Shaun Walker
Eureka Times Standard
MANILA -- A mother and son from Eureka died Saturday afternoon when the boat they were in capsized. The Coast Guard helicopter that was trying to rescue them crashed into the surf.
The Humboldt County Coroner's Office identified the deceased as Vesta Lorraine Baker, 82, who died at the scene, and her son Charles Wayne Baker, 59, who was pronounced dead at the hospital. The name of the boat was the White Horse II. The other two people from the boat were taken to a hospital, while the three Coast Guard crew members in the helicopter apparently received only minor injuries.
A 911 call came into the Humboldt County Sheriff's Department shortly after 1 p.m., stating a boat had gotten too close to the breaking surf and capsized.
Deputies arrived on the scene shortly after the helicopter, which already had a rescue swimmer in the water. The swimmer had pulled a victim to the beach and was not in the helicopter at the time of the crash.
Deputy Roy Reynolds said he was helping to get one of the victims away from the surf when he looked up and saw the helicopter was down.
”I'm trying to drag a person to this beach and next thing I know the helicopter was in the water,” Reynolds said. It was upright at first, then a wave tipped it over, he said.
Others who were in the dunes nearby said they saw the helicopter hovering and then it was gone. They thought it landed.
The Coast Guard isn't commenting on what brought the helicopter down, but the crew is OK, according to Reynolds. They were able to get themselves out of the helicopter and to the beach.
”The Coast Guard just had scratches,” Reynolds said.
An investigation and clean-up team remained on the beach into the evening, when small debris could still be seen floating in the waves. Coast Guard personnel anchored the helicopter to the beach before the tide came in. A tow truck dragged the boat out of the surf zone and an excavator was being brought to the scene as the sun set.