Three people were rescued after a helicopter crashed into the Gulf of Mexico in Manatee County on Wednesday morning.
The crash happened just before 11 a.m. about one mile off the shore from the Sandbar Restaurant on Anna Maria Island.
“The helicopter kind of circled around, and it looked like it kinda hovered, and then next thing you know I kinda see the tail of the helicopter go up and nosedive right into the ocean and I saw the spraying of all the water going up and I heard a big boom, and that caught everyone’s attention,” said witness Steve Buso.
US Coast Guard crews from the St. Pete Station rescued the three people who were in the helicopter, according to the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office.
The helicopter pilot has been identified as Stanley Lee of Sarasota. He was taken to Blake Hospital and is currently in critical condition.
One of the passengers, Thomas McKnight, was also taken to Blake Hospital. His condition is unknown.
The third person who was in the helicopter, Peter Bowden, only suffered superficial wounds and was not taken to the hospital.
“After you see something like that I didn’t think it was gonna come out good for whoever was in the helicopter,” said Buso.
“I think in this case, the fact that the helicopter was only about 10-15 feet off the surface of the water played a big role that there are relatively minor injuries at this point,” said Bob Smith with Manatee County Public Safety.
Deputies say the helicopter was being used to photograph a Fountain powerboat off the coast of Anna Maria Island when it came down. The boat that was being photographed is the boat that pulled the three men from the helicopter.
The helicopter is described as a Robinson R44 single-rotor helicopter registered to Sarasota Helicopter Services LLC, according to the sheriff’s office. They were able to locate the wreckage using sonar and marked where it was.
The FAA and NTSB will now investigate and remove the helicopter from the water.
