Local law enforcement and state police provided an honor guard as the bodies of three service members killed in a helicopter crash in Mendon were removed to the Monroe County Medical Examiner’s office.
First responders lined the route and saluted as the motorcade went by. Some Mendon residents also lined the road with American Flags.
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office says accident investigators from the U.S. Army’s Air Safety Unit would arrive on Friday and take over the preliminary investigation begun by deputies and other first responders. They mapped out the perimeter of the crash debris field using ground searches, K9 units and drones.
The U.S. Army National Guard UH-60 Black Hawk went down in a field off West Bloomfield and Cheese Factory Roads in Mendon. It was on a routine training mission. The National Guard says all three soldiers aboard were assigned to the 1st Batallion’s C Company, 171st General Support Aviation Battalion.
The National Guard has released their names: Chief Warrant Officer 5 Steven Skoda of Rochester, Chief Warrant Officer 4 Christian Koch of Honeoye Falls and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Daniel Prial of Rochester.