Neighbors Who Helped After Medical Helicopter Crashed In Drexel Hill Honored By Local Officials
DREXEL HILL, Pa. (CBS) -- Neighbors who assisted in the aftermath of a helicopter crash in Drexel Hill were honored Thursday. They were recognized by Drexel Hill's mayor and state Rep. Mike Zabel.
The residents ran toward the scene of the crash and helped with the rescue effort.
The medical chopper crashed on Jan. 11 in front of the Drexel Hill United Methodist Church. All four people aboard the helicopter survived.
Every single one of the good Samaritans honored say not once did they feel nervous or scared when they jumped into action to help. And of course, every second counted on Jan. 11, the day that medical chopper came crashing down.
On Thursday, they were inside the Drexel Hill United Methodist Church calling this incident "a miracle on Burmont Road."
Four citizens were honored: an Upper Darby High School senior, her Uber driver, a neighbor that was picking up care packages for homeless families, and an off-duty EMT.
The medical chopper was en route to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia with a 2-year-old baby girl, a flight nurse, and a paramedic. They were within 10 minutes of landing when they heard a loud bang.
Pilot Danial Moore aimed for a patch of grass next to the church, avoiding power lines and trees. Quick thinking allowed him to save himself and everyone on board.
Moore said the only option he had was to crash slowly and that's pretty much how witnesses describe the impact.
The chopper landed on the left side, against the wall, leaving the 51-year-old pilot seriously injured. Everyone else on board was fine.
"My role ended up being to call 911 and then once they got the pilot out and away from the helicopter, I knelt down beside the guy and was like, 'hey, I called 911. Help is on the way. You're going to be OK,'" senior Emma Gray said.
Good Samaritan Tina Hamilton had blankets in her car and ran over to help.
"I was thankful that I had them because I was able to get the blanket to the baby and the pilot when they got him over there," Hamilton said. "It was cold out. It had to be one of the coldest days. It was cold. I don't know what the temperature was but the wind was brutal."
The NTSB investigation into the cause of the crash continues.
