Helicopter Clips Power Line in SW Iowa, Lands Safely

CLARINDA, IA (Radio Iowa) Things like this don’t usually end well. A crop-dusting helicopter took out a powerline Sunday evening in southwest Iowa, but the pilot manage to land safely.

The Bell Model 206 helicopter was spraying fields in an area about 1.5-miles north of Clarinda at around 6-p.m., Sunday, when the blades accidentally struck and cut the power line, causing an estimated $270-thousand dollars damage to the MidAmerican line and Southwest REC transformer.

The chopper pilot, Oren William Perkins of Abbeville, LA., brought the aircraft back to designated L-Z (landing zone), where it landed without incident. The FAA was notified about the incident.

The chopper is owned by JBI helicopters of Abbeville, LA. The Page County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by Clarinda Fire Department at the scene.

(Ric Hanson, KJAN, Atlantic)