A military helicopter crashed near Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state late Wednesday night, officials said.
The chopper went down around 9 p.m. near Summit Lake, which sits about 30 miles west of the base, according to the Thurston County Sheriff’s office. The base, an Army-Air Force installation, sits about 30 miles south of Seattle.
Military officials have released no details about the crash, including the type of helicopter that crashed, how many people were on board and what its mission was at the time of the crash.
“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 sheriff’s office wrote Wednesday night in a Facebook post. “At this time, the incident is still unfolding, and we do not have additional details to share.”
Sheriff Derek Sanders said a rescue operation was underway but had to pause at one point because “the scene is on fire.”
Joint Base Lewis-McChord was also the site of a helicopter crash in March 2024, when an Apache helicopter went down on base property. Both pilots of the Apache survived the crash, which occurred during a training exercise.
With News Wire Services
