Helicopter with infant on board pulls off ‘miracle’ crash landing

A medical helicopter transporting an infant to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia crashed in a nearby suburb, narrowly missing power lines and a church. Everyone on board survived without life-threatening injuries.

Photos from the scene on Tuesday afternoon showed a broken road sign and the wrecked helicopter just outside the Drexel Hill United Methodist Church in Upper Darby, an eastern suburb of Philadelphia.

Upper Darby Police Superintendent Timothy M. Bernhardt told reporters he wanted to shake the pilot’s hand for managing to crash-land without serious injuries to himself, two crew members, or the infant patient.

“It’s a miracle, it’s an absolute miracle, here what you see behind me,” said Bernhardt.

“We're blessed as a community and as a fire department,” said Fire Chief Thomas Sawyer. 

The child was taken to an area hospital as police sought to notify the family, which is reportedly in nearby Maryland. The cause of the crash was not immediately known. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said they were investigating.