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Valencia Man Identified As Victim In Helicopter Crash

A local resident is among the victims of a helicopter crash that killed three men in Acton on Sunday, a Coroner’s Department official said Monday.

 David Gene Gibbs, 59, of Valencia, Michael William Donatelli, 45, of Indiana, Pa., and Darren Arthur Rydstrom, 46, of Whittier, were killed in a collision at Polsa Rosa Ranch on Sunday, said Ed Winter, assistant chief coroner.


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The crew was filming  a television show for Bongo productions, according to Philip Sokoloski, vice president of integrated communications for Film LA, the office that permits shooting in Los Angeles County.

The name of the shoot, according to the permit, was “Untitled Military Project,” associated with a reality TV show.

The pilot and two passengers aboard the Bell 206 JetRanger.

The ranch is a movie, TV show and commercial location offered for rent to production companies. It has two airstrips and “miles of roads,” according to its website.

OSHA and NTSB responded to the scene. The National Transportation Safety Bureau is the lead investigative agency. The cause of the crash is still under investigation.

 The ranch is located on the northern edge of the Angeles National Forest.

 

Valencia Man Identified As Victim In Helicopter Crash

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About Perry Smith

Perry Smith is a print and broadcast journalist who has won several awards for his focused, hyperlocal community coverage in several different regions of the country. In addition to five years of experience covering the Santa Clarita Valley, Smith, a San Fernando Valley native, has worked in newspapers and news websites in Los Angeles, the Northwest, the Central Valley and the South, before coming to KHTS in 2012. To contact Smith, email him at Perry@hometownstation.com.