The victim, identified as Lt. Col. Paul Mikeal of Mooresville, North Carolina, was killed after a C-130 Hercules tanker belonging to the 145th Airlift Wing based out of Charlotte went down late Sunday, the Associated Press reported on Monday.
The plane was dropping fire retardant in an effort to contain a blaze in the Black Hills of South Dakota. David Eaker of the Great Basin Incident Management Team said six crew members were aboard.
According to state authorities, three people were recovered from the wreckage and taken to hospital. Other team members are feared dead but only Mikeal is confirmed to have lost his life in the accident so far. The cause of the crash has not yet been determined.
The Air Force released a statement on Monday, saying that seven other firefighting C-130s are being grounded in the wake of the crash.
Eight Air Force C-130s can be equipped to drop water or fire retardant, and are flown by US Air Force National Guard units throughout the country.
Wildfires are raging across the region in the states of Utah, Wyoming, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico and Montana.
MN/MF/HJL
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