Operator suffers two K-Max accidents in one week
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From: Beyond the black stump!
Operator suffers two K-Max accidents in one week
Condolences to all the guys at Grizzly Mountain.
Heppner native dies in helicopter crash
By Casey White
of the East Oregonian
DAYVILLE — A helicopter crash Friday killed Heppner native Ken Graves, while he was involved in a logging operation. He was 39.
Graves, a 1985 graduate of Heppner High School, flew the 2002 Kaman helicopter for Grizzly Mountain Aviation Inc. of Prineville as part of a logging operation near the Radio Mountain area. The crash occurred on property owned by D.R. Johnson.
“We’re pretty sure it was a mechanical failure,” said Melissa Towers, Graves’ cousin who lives in Burns and is serving as the family’s spokeswoman.
Witnesses told Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer and Undersheriff Jim McNellis that Graves had dropped a load of logs at the landing when he reportedly radioed ground crews that he needed to return to the service area.
While the helicopter was en route, witnesses said they heard a “loud whining noise” from the helicopter’s engine, drawing the attention of crews at the log landing as well as crews near the service area a mile away.
Towers said at that point, witnesses said her cousin said “good-bye boys” into the radio, “like he knew what was coming.”
The helicopter then went into what witnesses described as a “nose dive position” and crashed on a sparsely-timbered ridge about halfway between the log landing and the service area.
“He died doing what he loved best,” Towers said, “and that was flying helicopters.”
Graves is survived by his mother, Bonnie Paullus, of Sumpter, as well as numerous aunts, uncles and cousins. He also left behind a fiance, Renee Kuehner, at their home in Clarkia, Idaho (near Coeur d’Alene), and three children: Kayla, Samantha and Whitney.
Towers, who was close to Graves and considered him “the brother I never had,” said he had always loved the woods and operating heavy equipment, “so logging was a natural career choice for him.” He started working equipment on the ground before obtaining his pilot’s license.
For the past two summers, Towers said Graves worked with the Wildland Firefighters to fight wildfires in the Northwest. He also worked as an emergency medical technician while living in Heppner.
“He was just a caring person,” Towers said. “He was always putting everyone else first, like when he was an EMT and helping with the wildfires. He was liked by everybody. He was the brother I never had and always took care of me.
“He’ll be dearly missed.”
A funeral has not been set, Towers said, because the family is awaiting an autopsy.
The incident remains under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration and other authorities.
It was the second helicopter crash by a Grizzly Mountain Aviation helicopter in a week’s time.
The first was March 12 when pilot Darv Evans, 60, of Lone Oak, Ark., was hauling cut timber. Evans was treated for arm and back injuries at an area hospital, according to the Lane County Sheriff’s Office.
Evans reported mechanical difficulties with the rotor blades while he was about 300 feet in the air. The Sheriff’s Office said Evans released the logs and brought the helicopter down to about 20 feet before crashing.
Heppner native dies in helicopter crash
By Casey White
of the East Oregonian
DAYVILLE — A helicopter crash Friday killed Heppner native Ken Graves, while he was involved in a logging operation. He was 39.
Graves, a 1985 graduate of Heppner High School, flew the 2002 Kaman helicopter for Grizzly Mountain Aviation Inc. of Prineville as part of a logging operation near the Radio Mountain area. The crash occurred on property owned by D.R. Johnson.
“We’re pretty sure it was a mechanical failure,” said Melissa Towers, Graves’ cousin who lives in Burns and is serving as the family’s spokeswoman.
Witnesses told Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer and Undersheriff Jim McNellis that Graves had dropped a load of logs at the landing when he reportedly radioed ground crews that he needed to return to the service area.
While the helicopter was en route, witnesses said they heard a “loud whining noise” from the helicopter’s engine, drawing the attention of crews at the log landing as well as crews near the service area a mile away.
Towers said at that point, witnesses said her cousin said “good-bye boys” into the radio, “like he knew what was coming.”
The helicopter then went into what witnesses described as a “nose dive position” and crashed on a sparsely-timbered ridge about halfway between the log landing and the service area.
“He died doing what he loved best,” Towers said, “and that was flying helicopters.”
Graves is survived by his mother, Bonnie Paullus, of Sumpter, as well as numerous aunts, uncles and cousins. He also left behind a fiance, Renee Kuehner, at their home in Clarkia, Idaho (near Coeur d’Alene), and three children: Kayla, Samantha and Whitney.
Towers, who was close to Graves and considered him “the brother I never had,” said he had always loved the woods and operating heavy equipment, “so logging was a natural career choice for him.” He started working equipment on the ground before obtaining his pilot’s license.
For the past two summers, Towers said Graves worked with the Wildland Firefighters to fight wildfires in the Northwest. He also worked as an emergency medical technician while living in Heppner.
“He was just a caring person,” Towers said. “He was always putting everyone else first, like when he was an EMT and helping with the wildfires. He was liked by everybody. He was the brother I never had and always took care of me.
“He’ll be dearly missed.”
A funeral has not been set, Towers said, because the family is awaiting an autopsy.
The incident remains under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration and other authorities.
It was the second helicopter crash by a Grizzly Mountain Aviation helicopter in a week’s time.
The first was March 12 when pilot Darv Evans, 60, of Lone Oak, Ark., was hauling cut timber. Evans was treated for arm and back injuries at an area hospital, according to the Lane County Sheriff’s Office.
Evans reported mechanical difficulties with the rotor blades while he was about 300 feet in the air. The Sheriff’s Office said Evans released the logs and brought the helicopter down to about 20 feet before crashing.
