Cherry Point is setting up a claims center after a Marine Corps helicopter’s take-off Saturday at the Havelock Chili Festival blew down tents, damaged merchandise and sent four people to the hospital.
Those four people reportedly have been released, with one woman suffering a broken leg and shoulder. One man was knocked unconscious during the incident in which wind created by the helicopter’s rotors sent various items flying across the festival area.
The claims center will be for anyone who may have had property damage or was injured during the incident. The center will open from noon to 5 p.m. Tuesday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday at the Havelock Tourist and Event Center.
Afterward, claims may be filed from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Cherry Point’s Joint Law Center on 2nd Avenue.
Also, a temporary phone information line has been set up at 466-4241 and will operate from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Cherry Point officials are investigating the incident in which Marine Corps rescue helicopter Pedro took off Saturday afternoon for its return to the base after it was on static display during the festival.
First Lt. Megan Greathouse, media officer at Cherry Point, said there is no timetable on how long the investigation will take.
“These investigations can take a long time,” she said. “It is not possible to estimate the time as all investigations vary in length, depending on the amount of information being sought and how many witnesses are available to provide information.”
Greathouse said the investigation is a formal process.
“An investigator who is knowledgeable about the type of aircraft involved and the procedures for use of that aircraft will question anyone and everyone who can provide information about the incident,” she said. “He will likely talk to anyone who can shed light on the events.”
She said the names of the pilot and the crew of the helicopter were not being released.
A Cherry Point Pedro rescue helicopter was on static display the previous weekend at the Mumfest in New Bern and has been a regular feature at a number of festivals and events in the area, including Military Family Appreciation Day in Havelock. That event is held at the same location as the Chili Festival. Greathouse said there have not been any similar incidents at any of those events.
The Cherry Point-based HH-46 Pedro helicopter had been on static display throughout Saturday at the festival near the Havelock Police Department and took off about 3:45 p.m., flying over part of the festival grounds at Walter B. Jones Park.
The wind created from the turning rotors overturned vendor tents and sent papers, tables, chairs and merchandise flying through the air as the helicopter lifted off.
Havelock rescue personnel transported four people to CarolinaEast Medical Center in New Bern for treatment. There were also others with minor injuries such as scrapes and bruises.
Many rescue personnel were already at the festival, and others were at the nearby fire station and quickly attended to those with injuries.
When the helicopter landed around 9:30 a.m. Saturday at the start of the festival, it first circled the area and came in from the direction of Cunningham Boulevard, away from the festival grounds. It landed near the Havelock Police Department facing toward the festival area, and the wind from the rotors did not cause a problem.
When the helicopter took off near the end of the festival, the pilot headed in the direction it was facing, which was right over the festival grounds.
The helicopter took off just as the band The Yams was playing its last song and just before the awards ceremony was about to begin.
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