Pilot injured in helicopter crash

A helicopter pilot was injured after crashing while fighting the Pigeon Valley fire near Nelson.

Reid Helicopters, a family-owned company prominent in the region, confirmed one of their helicopters was involved. It did not say what caused the helicopter to go down. St John was called to Eves Valley, Brightwater, at 2.55pm yesterday.

The pilot was taken by ambulance to Nelson Hospital with minor injuries.

The pilot jettisoned a monsoon bucket and made a mayday call before the crash, Reid Helicopters said. ‘‘The helicopter made a hard landing next to a road within the fire ground. The pilot was the sole occupant and received minor injuries.’’

Acting area commander Inspector Zane Hooper would not comment on the circumstances surrounding the accident, or whether wind had been a factor in the crash.

A number of people in the Eves Valley area called emergency services to report the crash. Air operations were suspended after the crash but resumed after clearance from the Civil Aviation Authority.

Civil Aviation Authority spokesman Mike Richards said investigators were currently talking to the operator of the helicopter company.

The Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) would investigate.

Meanwhile, Pigeon Valley residents were allowed home, but some remained on standby in case they had to be evacuated.

Alison White took stock of her property yesterday and estimated up to two thirds of her property has been affected by the fire.

White spent yesterday shifting stock, moving cattle off her property and organising food and water for the remaining animals.

White and her husband have 12 hectares of forestry and three hectares of native bush. They jointly farm a 20-hectare property with White’s brother-in-law and have sheep, cattle, and chickens.

She estimated at least half to two thirds of their land was affected by the fire. Even in places where it was green, the fire had burnt underneath.

She thought that a third of the forest was unscathed, but it was hard to be sure.

"Because the trees are relatively young, the bark isn’t particularly thick or hard, so the inside of the tree boils and then later on you start finding you’ve got dead trees you didn’t know were dead.’’

White said the fires meant the family had taken a ‘‘big hit’’ financially.

‘‘Our three children have the cutting rights to the trees, so for them, most of what they put into the trees is lost.

‘‘They paid out for thinning, pruning, and of course put a lot of physical work into it themselves.

‘‘So to turn around and have to clear the burnt trees and replant will be a major cost.’’

She said their insurance didn’t cover the damage to the trees.

‘‘We didn’t have fire insurance on the trees because generally speaking you don’t have insurance on them until they’re 10 years old, and that’s about the age they were when the fire went through.

‘‘It’s quite expensive to insure your trees, you take a calculated risk I guess.’’

White said all their animals had survived.

Civil Defence said yesterday residents of the remaining 14 evacuated properties from Pigeon Valley had conditional reentry to the valley for six hours from 8am.