Posted on 03/01/2018 1:19:45 PM PST by nickcarraway
In a bizarre incident a raft dropped from a Royal Canadian Air Force helicopter and smashed through the roof of a Miami house Wednesday, injuring a woman inside.
The raft, which was not inflated at the time and instead was packaged in a square bundle, punched a hole in the roof a little more than a half a metre by half a metre.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Capt. W.A. McAllister said the incident was a close call for the woman who was sleeping in the house at the time. “Fortunately, the occupant narrowly escaped disaster and suffered minor injuries,” McAllister told journalists.
The raft “separated” from the helicopter but it is unclear what caused that to happen, according to Miami police.
The equipment was from a RCAF Griffon helicopter which had been conducting a training exercise. The aircraft was flying to an airport in Miami.
The Griffon helicopter was returning to United States Coast Guard Air Station Miami in Opa Locka, Florida from a sortie on Exercise Southern Breeze when the incident happened, the RCAF said in a statement. “The Royal Canadian Air Force intends to support the affected resident with immediate accommodations and other support,” it added. The incident is now under investigation by the RCAF’s Directorate of Flight Safety. The raft in question is a six-person raft. When stowed, it is in a plastic bag, and “is approximately two feet by two feet in size, and weighs approximately 80 lbs,” according to the RCAF. The raft is stored inside the helicopter and is strapped down.
Witnesses told Miami TV station WSVN 7 that they thought they heard what sounded like an explosion when the raft crashed through the roof.
“As soon as I get in, I heard the impact — boom — big impact, and I heard her screaming,” another witness told Local 10 News TV.
Military personnel were at the home but it is not clear whether they were from the RCAF.
The incident comes a year after another RCAF training mission made headlines in Florida. In that case, two CF-18 fighter jets were preparing for a landing at a Florida airport that closed seven years ago but were warned off at the last minute by air traffic controllers that the facility no longer had a functioning runway.
The jets, from Cold Lake, Alta., were in Florida for a training exercise and had planned to land at Tyndall Air Force Base just outside Panama City, Fla. But because of a minor in-field emergency at Tyndall, the CF-18s were diverted to Northwest Beaches International also in the same area.
The Royal Canadian Air Force jets began their approach on what they believed was Northwest Beaches but instead turned out to be SweetBay, an airport that closed in 2010.
SweetBay is now the location of a new housing development, and while a runway still exists on the site, it is no longer functioning.
Local residents watched as the fighter jets came in with their wheels down before they aborted their landing.
Yeah, that could ruin your whole day...............
I hate it when that happens.
” two CF-18 fighter jets were preparing for a landing at a Florida airport that closed seven years ago”.
Yep, and I’m wondering ?? ..... - how often do they update procedure revisions?
This Canadian aggression must be responded to!
Don’t they have Canadian towns to bomb?
Of course, you know this means war!
“Canadians bomb house in Miami in opening salvo of far reaching trade war”
2’x2’ and 80 pounds? That raft will never float.
The crew had probably borrowed the tie-down to secure their two-four of Keith’r Pale Ale.
Actually, at 80# and 8 cubic feet, it'll float quite nicely.......
That would be a raft of injuries.
I wouldn’t want to rely on a raft that has gone through someone’s roof.
All WE manage to drop are the ice blocks from the heads.
At least the canoe can (maybe) be put to use.
This is easy to do. I had never been into Austin Texas Mueller before. I was on an IFR clearance. On approach I dropped out of the clouds and saw this big beautiful runway a few miles in the distance. It was really big. I canceled IFR, a bad error! A couple of minutes later they asked me if I had the runway. I replied, I have the runway. The controller informed me, "with great sarcasm," that I had the runway for Bergstrom Air Force Base. I humbly asked for vectors to Mueller. I think I made his day and deserved ever bit of sarcasm he directed my way.
Yea next time drop Kalona beer and chips.
“Anybody seen the raft?”
“No, Sir. But, I coulda sworn it was here a couple of minutes ago.”
Do they fly over the US routinely? Do we fly over Canadian air space?
They were on a training mission.
"Do we fly over Canadian air space?"
All the time. The airport in my city is an emergency diversion strip for Selfridge AFB north of Detroit. ANG fighters pass over my house all the time practicing touch and goes.
Its not like Canada and the US were allies or anything.
“”Its not like Canada and the US were allies or anything. “”
And it’s not like a FReeper to miss a chance to post sarcastically - no matter their home country.
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