Helicopter With Traffic Reporters Aboard Crash Lands

GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas (AP) _ A helicopter carrying a pilot and two traffic reporters crashed landed after losing power Monday morning, leaving the passengers bruised but alive. <br/><br/>Chip Waggoner,

Monday, July 30th 2007, 8:29 am

By: News On 6

GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas (AP) _ A helicopter carrying a pilot and two traffic reporters crashed landed after losing power Monday morning, leaving the passengers bruised but alive.

Chip Waggoner, who was reporting for Dallas Fox affiliate KDFW-TV, told his station that the aircraft lost power about 7 a.m. and that pilot Curtis Crump was able to make a hard emergency landing, with the aircraft skidding and then tipped before coming to a stop near a lake dam.

Waggoner said he and Crump appeared to be unhurt, and radio traffic reporter Julie DeHarty was sore but able to walk. DeHarty is the traffic reporter for Dallas radio stations KRLD-AM and KVIL-FM.

The hard landing followed the deadly collision Friday of two television news helicopters in Phoenix. The two helicopters collided in midair while covering a police chase, killing all four people aboard.