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PHOTOS: Ground pics of crash

PHOTOS: Aerials

VIDEO: Cause unknown

VIDEO: Chopper rolled as it crashed

VIDEO: Crew lucky to be alive

VIDEO: First report

UPDATE: Saturday evening

FLAGSTAFF -- A paramedic who was injured when an Air Evac helicopter crashed near Ash Fork Friday morning is doing better.

Injured paramedic doing better

The paramedic was the most seriously injured of the three people aboard the chopper.

His condition was upgraded to serious Saturday.

He, a pilot and a nurse were all hurt when their chopper crashed and rolled while trying to land to pick up a patient.

The cause of the crash is under investigation.

ORIGINAL STORY

ASH FORK -- Three people were thrown from an Air Evac helicopter when it crashed outside Ash Fork Friday morning.

The Prescott Air Evac crew was on its way to pick up a patient when the helicopter went down shortly after 4 a.m., south of Ash Fork.

It's not clear what caused the crash. A pilot, a nurse and a medic were on board at the time. According to Air Evac, the patient, the victim of a motorcycle crash on Highway 89, had not been picked up yet.

Video from NewsChopper 3 showed the wreckage. The chopper was on its side and looked like it had burned. It addition, both the main rotor and tail rotor had been ripped off.

The chopper was trying to establish a landing zone when it went down. The pilot did not want want to block the road by landing on it. He opted to put down in nearby dirt field.

According to the Yavapai County Sheriff's Department, the chopper rolled several times as it was trying to land. The rotors kicked up the soft dirt, filling the cabin with dust and possibly causing the engine to stall.

The pilot, nurse and medic were all thrown from the helicopter as it rolled 150 to 200 yards, according to YCSO. One of those people was actually up and walking around shortly after the crash, said YCSO.

Emergency crews were already on the scene to deal with the motorcycle crash.

All three members of the crew, along with the patient they were going to pick up, were taken by ground and by air to Flagstaff Medical Center. The chopper crews' injuries reportedly were not life threatening; one was in critical condition, one serious and the third in good condition.

The National Transportation Safety Board is expected to arrive on scene later Friday morning.

The cause of the crash is under investigation.

Ash Fork is located on Interstate 40 about 50 miles west of Flagstaff.