Man spraying crops crashes, small plane fire erupts
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The following is a news release and photos from the Caribou County Sheriff’s Office.
On Monday, July 15, at approximately 1:18 p.m., the Caribou County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a plane crash on the hillside just west of 2629 Kelly Toponce Road in Bancroft.
Emergency Responders included the Caribou County Sheriff’s Office, Bancroft EMS and Air Methods Five, Air Ambulance.
The pilot, Curtis E. Hill, 56, of Somerton, Arizona was flying a 1977 Piper PA36 Brave for Hill AG Air, LLC out of Malad. Hill was in the process of spraying a field with agricultural chemicals. During his second flyover of the hill, the airplane lost lift and Hill immediately attempted to dump the chemicals to gain lift.
Hill was unable to dump the chemicals and the airplane struck the hillside. It started on fire briefly but the chemicals onboard extinguished the fire.
Hill was transported to the Caribou Memorial Hospital by ground ambulance to be treated for non-life-threatening, minor injuries. The crash is being investigated by the Caribou County Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).