Colorado crash of medical transport helicopter kills pilot

(Reuters) - A medical transport helicopter crashed during a take-off on Friday in Colorado, killing the pilot and seriously injuring two others on board, authorities said. The Flight for Life Helicopter was taking off early afternoon from St. Anthony Summit Medical Centre in Frisco, about 70 miles west of Denver, when it crashed, according to Lake Dillon Fire-Rescue Public Information Officer Steve Lipsher. No patients were on board, and the helicopter was not on a medical mission at the time, he said. The pilot was killed, and a flight paramedic and flight nurse were seriously injured, according to Air Methods Corp , an Englewood, Colorado-based company that operated the helicopter. “We are deeply saddened by the news that our pilot was fatally injured, and our hearts go out to the pilot’s family," the company said in a statement. Photos released on line by Lake Dillon Fire-Rescue showed mangled wreckage of the helicopter engulfed in flames. (Reporting by Ellen Wulfhorst, Editing by XX)