MSP Trooper 2 Remembered

Around 11:10 pm Saturday September 27th, 2008, Trooper 2 responded to Waldorf, Maryland. The mission was to transport two car crash victims to Prince George's Hospital Center's trauma unit. After lifting off from the scene with 3 crew members and two patients on board, the pilot contacted the tower at Andrews Air Force Base requesting assistance with an instrument landing due to weather. Two ambulances were dispatched to the airfield to meet the helicopter and complete the patient transports. The helicopter never arrived. According to National Transportation Safety Board member Debbie Hersman, between the time the helicopter left its hanger at Andrews Air Force Base and when it was back in the same area, heading to the hospital, visibility had dropped from about seven miles to four miles. In that same hour, the cloud cover, or ceiling, went from 1300 feet to as low as 200 feet in some spots. An intense search began and the helicopter was found crashed in a heavily wooded area at 2am. Killed in the crash were Pilot Stephen Bunker, Trooper/Medic First Class Mickey Lippy, EMT-B Tonya Mallard of the Waldorf Volunteer Fire Department and Ashley Younger, a 17-year-old who was the second victim from the Waldorf car accident.