Monroe County helicopter crash kills two, injures one, police say

The helicopter, which is based out of New Jersey, was reported missing in rainy and foggy weather late Tuesday and found about 2:30 this morning.

Two people are dead and one is in the hospital after a helicopter crash near Interstate 380 in Coolbaugh Township, Monroe County, Pocono Regional police Chief Harry Lewis said just before 6 this morning.

The helicopter was reported missing late Tuesday night and was found about 2:30 this morning about a mile from Route 423, Lewis said. Before sunrise it was difficult to assess the damage to the helicopter, which came to a rest just south of Interstate 380, about 500 feet into the woods, Lewis said. There are homes within a mile or two of the crash, but the immediate scene was remote, he said.

The injured person was taken to a hospital, Lewis said. All the victims were adults, Lewis said.

It was initially unclear from where the helicopter was flying or its planned destination. Pocono Mountains Regional Airport is in the general vicinity of the crash site. The helicopter was neither medical nor military, according to the Monroe County Communications Center. The Army base at Tobyhanna is nearby.

Officials say the helicopter is registered to ACS Helicopters LLC in Far Hills, N.J., and based out of the Somerset Airport in Somerville, N.J., the Associated Press reports.

The weather was bad Tuesday night, Lewis said, with rain and fog making conditions difficult.

"It was not ideal flying weather," Lewis said.

Authorities used GPS technology to zero in on a cellphone on the plane, he said.

Monroe County Coroner Bob Allen was on the scene, Lewis said. The Federal Aviation Administration has joined police in the investigation.

More information will be released as it becomes available, Lewis said.