Two pilots, Miles Elliott and Christopher Andersen, died on August 7, 2026, when their helicopter crashed while battling the Widemouth 2 Fire in Utah. The incident occurred approximately 12 miles south of Kanosh as they were engaged in water dropping operations.
Contact with the helicopter was lost at 10:41 a.m., and wreckage was later found, confirming the fatal crash. Elliott, 50, was a wildland contract pilot with 15 years of service.
This incident contributes to the 53 firefighter fatalities reported in 2026 under the Firefighter Fatality Notification Pilot program.