Seven Hurt in Navy Jet Crash in Death Valley

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Crews are searching for the pilot of a U.S. Navy fighter jet that crashed in Death Valley National Park, injuring seven people who were at a scenic overlook where aviation enthusiasts routinely watch military aircraft speeding low through a chasm dubbed Star Wars Canyon, officials said. The crash sent dark smoke billowing in the air, said Aaron Cassell, who was working at his family's Panamint Springs Resort about 10 miles (16 kilometers) away and was the first to report the crash to park dispatch. "I just saw a black mushroom cloud go up," Cassell told The Associated Press. "Typically you don't see a mushroom cloud in the desert." A search was underway for the pilot of the single-seat F/A-18 Super Hornet that was on a routine training mission, said Lt. Cmdr. Lydia Bock, spokeswoman for Naval Air Station Lemoore in California's Central Valley. "The status of the pilot is unknown at this time," Bock said about four hours after the crash. Ambulances were sent to the crash site near Father Crowley Overlook, said park spokesman Patrick Taylor. He said initial reports were that seven park visitors had minor injuries. KABC-TV spoke to tourists who said they were treated at a hospital for minor burns and cuts from flying fragments after the plane crashed and exploded. The injured tourists told the news station they were taking photos of the sweeping landscape when the jet screamed into view and slammed into the canyon wall. The look...
Source: JEMS Operations - Category: Emergency Medicine Tags: News AP News Tag Operations Source Type: news