Crews Recover Bodies in Tour Helicopter Crash

W A I L U K U, Hawaii, July 23 -- Rescue crews completed the dangerous task Saturday of retrieving the bodies of seven peoplekilled Friday in a tour helicopter crash on Maui.

The crash of the Blue Hawaiian Helicopters twin-engine AS355occurred on a steep mountain hillside in a remote area of IaoValley. Photos of the crash scene provided by police show the tailsection intact but the rest of the helicopter disintegrated intothousands of pieces.

The crash site has a deep slope of about 30 degrees, and is awet and slick area, making it difficult for crews to gain access,said Lt. John Morioka, a spokesman for the Maui Police Department.

Rappelled From Helicopters

“There’s no place a helicopter can land, so the men arerappelling down,” he said.

A 10-man crew rappelled down from the helicopter to a ridge andthen set new lines to rappel to the site at the 2,700-foot level,Morioka said.

Among the recovery team are a master rappeller and crews whotake part in eradicating marijuana from remote areas, he said.

George Petterson, an investigator for the NationalTransportation Safety Board, said Saturday morning that recovery ofthe bodies would continue during the day, with recovery of thewreckage scheduled for today.

He said he will review pilot and maintenance records, and meetwith representatives of the helicopter and engine manufacturers whoare en route to the island.

“We really need to look at all the parts and pieces and look atthe whole picture,” he said. He expects to issue a preliminaryreport in about five days.

Dental records were used to identify the pilot as Larry Kirsh,55, police said.

The names of the other victims were to be released after theyare positively identified through their dental records, which areto arrive Monday, said Richard Sword, a Maui psychologist handlingdisaster stress control for the families of victims.

Victims From Texas, N.J.

The Fort Worth (Texas) Star-Telegram identified two of thevictims as 14-year-old girlfriends Whitney Wood of Burleson, Texas,and Natalie Prince of Fort Worth, Texas.