Helicopter involved in wildfire fight crashes at Fort Good Hope, N.W.T., airport

A helicopter involved in the ongoing fight against a wildfire near Fort Good Hope, N.W.T.has crashed at the community's airport.

RCMP said they received a report of the incident around 2 p.m. Friday.

In an email after 5 p.m. Friday, N.W.T. wildfire information officer Mike Westwick confirmed the incident took place "during wildfire management operations."

"This is an emerging situation, and the incident is being handled by the appropriate authorities," Westwick wrote.

The Transportation Safety Board (TSB) of Canada said in a statement Friday evening that the incident happened at the Fort Good Hope airport and involved a Bell Textron B212 helicopter, operated by Yellowknife-based Great Slave Helicopters. The TSB said it will be deploying a team of investigators.

Police were also heading to Fort Good Hope, RCMP said in a news release.

"No other information is available at this time," the release said.

Fort Good Hope has been under an evacuation order since June 15 as a wildfire continues to burn just at the community's doorstep.

As of the latest update, that fire was 6,285 hectares in size.