Pilot employed by Idaho company killed in plane crash while fighting Montana wildfire

Elizabeth Walsh

July 11, 2024 at 4:30 p.m.·2 min read

A 45-year-old female pilot who was employed by an Idaho-based company died Wednesday in a plane crash while responding to a fire in Montana, according to the Lewis and Clark County Sheriff’s Office in Montana.

The human-caused Horse Gulch Fire began Tuesday outside of Helena, Montana, and has burned more than 1,000 acres in the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. The Sheriff’s Office, in a news release, identified the pilot as Juliana Turchetti, an employee of Dauntless Air. The aerial firefighting company works with wildland firefighters and was on loan from Idaho to the U.S. Forest Service to help contain the fire, Idaho Gov. Brad Little and Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte said in a joint news release.

Turchetti’s plane crashed into a mountainside and landed in Hauser Lake, according to the Sheriff’s Office. It’s unclear whether Turchetti, a native of Brazil, lived in Idaho, Betsy Kirkeby, spokesperson for the Lewis and Clark County Sheriff’s Office, told the Idaho Statesman. Turchetti was the only person on the plane, and no other deaths or injuries were reported, according to the FAA.

“It’s a true act of bravery to run toward a fire,” Little and Gianforte said in their joint news release. “We join all Montanans and Idahoans in praying for the fallen hero’s family and friends during this tragic time.”

Lewis and Clark County Search and Rescue, working with a dive team from Gallatin County, recovered Turchetti’s body from the lake Wednesday night, the Daily Montanan reported.

The National Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation into what caused the crash, the Federal Aviation Administration said

The fire as of Thursday afternoon was 0% contained, U.S. Forest Service District Ranger Sarah Rouse told the Statesman.

People
American Woman Found Chained to a Tree in India Went Without Food for 40 Days, Was Allegedly Left to Die
Lalita Kayi Kumar, 50, alleges her ex-husband left her in a jungle to die
The Daily Beast
Starving American Yoga Student Chained to Tree ‘For 40 Days’
An American woman who went to India a decade ago to study yoga and meditation has claimed she survived without food and water for 40 days after being shackled to a tree by her former husband.U.S. citizen Lalita Kayi Kumar, 50, was found starving and emaciated on Saturday by a local shepherd in a remote forest in the Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra about 25 miles from Goa, according to reports.The shepherd broke an iron chain that was used to secure her to the tree. Police said she was severel
People
A Social Worker Accidentally Knocked on Wrong Door. Man Who Answered Allegedly Stomped Her to Death: Police
Maria Coto, 56, died after suffering severe brain bleed, brain swelling and multiple facial fractures in May, per authorities
USA TODAY
14 sex buyers arrested, 10 victims recovered in human trafficking sting at Comic-Con
Fourteen people were arrested and 10 victims were rescued following a human sex trafficking sting at San Diego's Comic-Con Convention.
The Canadian Press
Teen brother of Air Force airman who was killed by Florida deputy is shot to death near Atlanta
ATLANTA (AP) — The teenage brother of a U.S. Air Force airman who was shot and killed in his home by a Florida sheriff's deputy in May has been killed in a shooting in the Atlanta area, authorities said.
CNN
United Airlines says flight attendant in Terrell Davis incident is no longer employed and NFL legend’s ‘no fly’ ban is lifted
The flight attendant involved in an incident that led to Terrell Davis’ removal from a United Airlines plane in handcuffs “is no longer employed” and the NFL Hall of Famer’s “no fly” ban has been lifted, the airline told CNN Tuesday.
CBC
Inmate linked to Blood Family Mafia gang tortured and disfigured in Quebec City prison
A 25-year-old man affiliated with the Blood Family Mafia is in hospital after he was tortured on July 24 at the Quebec City detention centre.Maxime Maheux was sentenced to five years in prison two weeks ago after pleading guilty to several charges related to arson and assault.In court, he admitted to being associated with the Blood Family Mafia gang and Radio-Canada reported that he had collaborated with police.The attack at Osainville Prison that left Maheux hospitalized last week was clearly a
PA Media: UK News
Man convicted over death of ‘horrifically tortured’ radio DJ
A post-mortem examination revealed 94 separate injuries on Mehmet Koray Alpergin’s body.
The Canadian Press
August execution date set for Florida man involved in 1994 killing and rape in national forest
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — A Florida man convicted of kidnapping adult siblings camping in a national forest in 1994 before raping the sister and murdering the brother has been scheduled to be executed next month.
The Canadian Press
As India grows older, a secret shame emerges: Elders abandoned by their children
GARHMUKTESHWAR, India (AP) — They were found in gutters, on streets, in bushes. They were boarded on trains, deserted in hospitals, dumped at temples. They were sent away for being sick or outliving paychecks or simply growing too old.
ABC News
2 men fatally shoot each other in California road rage incident
Two men are dead after they fatally shot one another in an apparent road rage incident in Southern California, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. "It could've been so incredibly simple, but unfortunately we have two people who lost their lives instead," Mara Rodriguez, spokesperson for the sheriff's department, told Los Angeles ABC station KABC. Jonathan McConnell, 38, who was driving a motorcycle, was involved in a hit-and-run traffic collision on the 210 Freeway with Aaron Harris, 37, who was driving a sedan, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.
CNN
White woman who wrongfully accused ‘Groveland Four’ of rape in Jim Crow-era South dies at 92
A White woman who falsely accused four Black men of rape in the Jim Crow-era South in 1949 has died at the age of 92.
CBC
Toronto father and son face multiple terror-related charges
A Toronto father and son who were arrested while in the "advanced stages" of planning a violent attack have been charged with multiple terrorism-related offences, the RMCP say.Ahmed Fouad Mostafa Eldidi, 62, and Mostafa Eldidi, 26, face a total of nine charges; including conspiracy to commit murder for the benefit or at the direction of a terrorist group — namely the Islamic State, a Sunni Muslim militant group.RCMP Assistant Commissioner Matt Peggs announced the charges at a news conference in
The Daily Beast
Prince Harry’s Uncle Has Died. Will He Join His Family at the Funeral?
Prince Harry faces renewed pressure to come home and face his family following the death Monday of his and Prince William’s uncle, Lord Robert Fellowes, at the age of 82.Harry’s representatives were not immediately able to say whether he would attend the funeral of his uncle, a date for which has not been announced. Fellowes was not only married to Princess Diana’s elder sister, Jane Fellowes (née Spencer), but was also the late Queen Elizabeth’s private secretary for nine of the most tumultuous
Reuters
Exclusive-US Army stops paying soldier imprisoned in Russia, may prosecute him
The Army has stopped paying wages and allowances to a U.S. soldier sentenced last month to nearly four years in a Russian penal colony and may prosecute him if he returns to the United States, U.S. officials said. Gordon Black, a 34-year-old staff sergeant, was convicted in Russia of theft and threatening murder. He was also having an extramarital affair - prohibited in the U.S. military - with a Russian woman named Alexandra Vashchuk, who he met during a deployment in South Korea.
CBC
Murder victim feared husband after filing for divorce: court docs
WARNING: This story contains details of domestic abuse.Three months before her death, Kamaljit Sandhu filed for divorce after enduring years of domestic violence.Her husband — Inderjit Singh Sandhu — was in India at the time.Kamaljit Sandhu, who lives in Abbotsford, a city about 70 kilometres east of Vancouver in B.C.'s Fraser Valley, got a protection order. In an affidavit, she claimed she was afraid the 50-year-old "would harm her when he became aware of the court proceedings."It wasn't long b
People
Mica Miller's Family Ends Legal Battle with Her Pastor Husband After Her Suicide: 'Put This Behind Us'
"When we say that we’ve gotten justice for Mica as a result of this settlement, it is true," said a lawyer for Mica Miller's family
PA Media: UK News
Man found guilty of attempted murder after pushing postman onto Tube tracks
Kurdish migrant Brwa Shorsh, 24, shoved stranger Tadeusz Potoczek, 61, at Oxford Circus Underground station in central London on February 3.
CNN
A third girl has died in the UK after one of the worst attacks on children in decades. Here’s what to know
The United Kingdom was left shaken after two children were stabbed to death and nine others were injured in a knife attack in Southport, in one of the worst assaults against children in the country in decades.
The Canadian Press
Discovery of 19 dead dogs in Newfoundland leads to cruelty charges for Ontario man
ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — A 52-year-old man from Ontario has been charged with animal cruelty after police found 19 dead dogs at a home in eastern Newfoundland this week.

Latest Stories