Lizard Head Pass, San Miguel County, Colorado

Search chopper crashes as cross-country skier found dead on Lizard Head Pass;   No injuries from crash

 
TELLURIDE, Colo. - A search and rescue helicopter crashed Saturday in San Miguel County during the search for a missing cross-country skier who was later found dead.

Sheriff Bill Masters said no one was seriously injured when the helicopter lost power at 10,000 feet.  It was carrying the pilot and a sheriff's deputy.

The search and rescue mission began Saturday morning for an 81-year-old man who was skiing with his Golden Retriever overnight.   The man's dog, named Buddy, was found guarding his body from coyotes in the area.

 Source:  http://www.thedenverchannel.com 

Search helicopter crashes in southwestern Colorado 

TELLURIDE, Colo. (AP) - Federal authorities are investigating after a helicopter involved in the search for a missing skier crashed in southwestern Colorado.

San Miguel County Sheriff Bill Masters says the Bell 407 helicopter with three crew members and a sheriff's deputy on board crashed near Lizard Head Pass after it lost power at about noon Saturday. No one was injured in the crash.

The team was looking Robert Blake, of Corrales, New Mexico, who was reported missing after he failed to return from an afternoon of cross-country skiing Friday. Blake's body was found by ground crews at about the same time the helicopter crashed.

Masters says it appears the man died of natural causes.

The helicopter was contracted out of Moab, Utah.

Source:   http://www.newschannel10.com