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Crop Duster Crashes
NEW ATHENS , ILLINOIS
The pilot of a crop dusting helicopter is dead after a "mechanical failure" caused him to crash into a St. Clair County, Illinois field. It happened about three miles north of New Athens, just of Illinois Highway 13.
St. Clair deputies say the chopper had been working in the area for much of the day. It set down in the field it was spraying, likely to refuel, Thursday afternoon. It was about 3:15 when he took off again, and something went terribly wrong.
"He had just taken off from that field and they were spraying the wheat out there with some kind of herbicide," Sgt. Mike Humbelt of the St. Clair Sheriff's Department said. "After takeoff they had some kind of mechanical problem and the helicopter crashed."
New Athens' mayor, who is also a pilot, said crop dusting aircraft have been plentiful in the area in recent weeks.
"For about the last three weeks there's been six crop dusting planes at the Sparta Airport and then these helicopters, so it's been a lot of activity," Mayor Gary Kearns said.
The helicopter, made by the Bell company, is registered to Couch Helicopters of northeast Arkansas.
The name and hometown of the pilot have not yet been released.
Federal investigators remained in the area Thursday night looking for clues as to why the helicopter crashed.
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