COLUMBIA COUNTY, Pa. — Bill Barratt of Mifflin Township said he was woken up Saturday morning by a sound he was not used to hearing, "There was an airplane flying around, and I didn't understand that, so I went out and sat on my glider, and shortly after the airplane was flying around, a helicopter flew in to start crop dusting."
Barratt has seen crop dusters fly over his home for years, but he says this one was different.
"He left and flew over my neighbor's house, and I thought something wasn't right. I just knew while I was sitting there, I said to myself, 'he's going to crash," said Barratt.
Newswatch 16 saw crews pulling part of the wreckage out of a tree that appeared to be tangled up in a power line.
The pilot of the aircraft, 39-year-old Theodore Farwell, was killed in the crash.
"I got in my car, and I drove up here. I was a little late getting here when he crashed, and there was a fire right here in front of his house," Barratt explained.
But when he saw the same helicopter on the ground with fire and FAA crews surrounding the area, Bill couldn't believe he watched it hover over his house just moments ago, "It was skimming the top of those ears of corn. And I've lived here, and I've seen them do it before, just not that low."
The South Centre Township Police, Federal Aviation Administration, and NTSB are investigating the deadly crash in Columbia County.
Original Story:
One person is dead after a helicopter crash in Columbia County.
Officials say, Theodore Farwell, 39, was piloting a crop-spraying helicopter when the aircraft went down.
Farwell was pronounced dead at the scene.
The South Centre Township Police, Federal Aviation Administration, and NTSB are investigating the deadly crash in Columbia County.
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