ALEXANDRIA, Minn. - Three people were critically injured when a North Memorial Center helicopter crashed near Alexandria early Saturday morning.
The incident happened at 2:07 a.m. near lake Winona on the north side of the Alexandria Airport, according to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Department. There were no patients on board at the time.
North Memorial says the medical helicopter was on its way to the Alexandria Airport and had a crew based out of Brainerd. All three crew members were taken to Douglas County Hospital and then transferred to North Memorial. They were listed in critical condition as of Saturday afternoon.
A National Transportation Safety Board spokesman tells KARE 11’s Dylan Wohlenhaus an NTSB investigator will be on scene for the next few days to investigate the crash alongside the FAA.
According to FAA records, North Memorial operates eight Agusta A109 helicopters at six base locations in Minnesota and western Wisconsin. The cause of the crash has still yet to be determined.
Douglas County Sheriff’s deputies, Alexandria Police Department, Alexandria Fire Department and North Memorial all responded to the crash.