Services set for firefighter killed in helicopter crash

Monday, Aug. 7, 2000 | 8:48 a.m.

Funeral services will be Tuesday for a 29-year-old firefighter who was killed when a helicopter crashed while battling the 3,600-acre Charlie fire in Elko County.

Phillip Conner of Las Vegas was a seasonal firefighter with the National Park Service at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. He died when the contract helicopter he was on crashed shortly after takeoff Thursday night.

Conner was the first person to die in the latest series of Western fires and the first to die in a Nevada wild fire since 1986.

The helicopter was operated by Rogers Helicopters of Clovis, Calif., and was under contract with the Interior Department for firefighting.

The helicopter and a three-man crew had been carrying water and supplies at the 3,600-acre Charlie fire in Elko County and was returning to Wells for the night when the accident occurred.

The Interior Department's Office of Aviation Safety and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the cause of the crash.

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