| Year Honored | |
|---|---|
| 1997 | |
| Honoree | |
| Jeffrey F Burt | |
| Agency | |
| Mercy Flight Central Inc | |
| Agency City | |
| Canandaigua | |
| Agency State | |
| NY | |
| Last Call | |
| 12/12/96 | |
| Cause of Death | |
| Medical Aviation Accident | |
| Biography | |
| Jeffrey F. Burt [P] Jeff Burt was a helicopter pilot. He was a graduate of Penn Yan Academy, SUNY Alfred and Emory Riddle University. He was a commercial pilot with over 4300 hours flying time. He was a certified Flight Instructor and was Mercy Flight Central's chief pilot. To Jeff Burt, flying was as easy as walking is to most people.<br /> <br /> On the evening of December 12, 1996, Jeff was called out by EMS personnel in Yates County, New York to transport a hunter who had fallen 30 feet from a tree. Burt flew to the scene with paramedic, Brian Shaw, on board.The Canandaigua-based aircraft went down about a mile from Hemlock Road where it had picked up the patient and then lifted off en route to Strong Memorial Hospital. Witnesses at the scene said the helicopter suddenly plunged several hundred feet back to earth shortly after lift-off. High wind and inclement weather were suspected causes. All three men were killed. Jeffrey Burt was 38.<br /> "I can't think of anything worse than this. This is as bad as it gets, for the families, for everybody," said Bill Bross, Mercy Flight's director of development.<br /> <br /> Mercy Flight Central, a nonprofit emergency air transport service for the Finger Lake region, began service in 1991. Based on Brickyard Road in Canandaigua, Mercy Flight Central operated two helicopters to transport seriouslyinjured accident victims and medical transfers from outlying hospitals.<br /> <br /> Jeff Burt was survived by his wife, Elaine.<br /> <br /> Honored 1997 |
The United States Official National EMS Memorial Service
