A crop dusting helicopter pilot was killed when his craft crashed in rural Washington County on Monday afternoon.
Washington County Coroner Mark Styninger identifies the victim as 41-year-old Donald Pruett of Mt. Vernon.
The crash occurred in a remote agricultural area north of the Oakdale Blacktop and west of Garfield Road. The aircraft was owned by Kash Helicopter Company and Pruett was the sole occupant.
The wreckage was found in a cornfield approximately one half of a mile from the roadway and under overhead power lines. It is unclear if the aircraft struck the power lines. The Federal Aviation Agency was called to the scene to investigate.
Styninger says the cause of death appears to be blunt force trauma but an autopsy will be scheduled in O’Fallon.
Agencies on the scene were the Washington County Ambulance Service and Sheriff’s Department, Nashville Fire Department, Illinois State Police and the Washington County Coroner’s office.
