BLAIR, W.Va. — State Police released the names Saturday afternoon of the six people killed in Wednesday’s Huey helicopter crash on state Route 17 near Blair in Logan County.
The victims are:
John Nagle II age 53 of Austin, TX
Donald Sandhoff age 69 of Durham, NC
Kevin Warren age 51 of Franklin, TN
Carolyn O’Connor age 73 of Winter Garden, FL
Marvin Bledsoe age 64 of Chapmanville, WV
Jack Collins age 65 of Chapmanville, WV
The National Transportation Safety Board removed the wreckage from the highway Friday. It was transported to an Atlanta-based warehouse.
NTSB experts will analyze every piece of the wreckage and rebuild the crash scene for further study. A preliminary report is expected within two weeks, but the actual investigation into what brought down the Vietnam era Huey chopper could take up to two years to completee.
Route 17, the Blair Mountain Highway, was reopened to traffic Friday afternoon. The crash came as the owners of the vintage helicopter offered free rides as part of the annual Huey Reunion at the Logan County Airport. The NTSB said that Wednesday late afternoon ride was the final one of the day and took different a route than the other rides had.
MetroNews was able to independently confirm two of the victims before Saturday’s release by state police including Marvin Bledsoe of Chapmanville and John Nagle of Texas.
WCHS TV reported Friday the family of Jack Collins of Logan County was among the six who perished that day. Collins’ daughter tells WCHS they could not get hold of her father and she went to the Logan airport where the flight originated and found his motorcycle.