3 Texas Parks And Wildlife Workers Killed In Helicopter Crash

AUSTIN, TX — Three Texas Parks and Wildlife employees were killed after the helicopter they were traveling in crashed in a West Texas wildlife preserve on Saturday, the agency confirmed.

Parks and wildlife officials on Sunday said the group was conducting aerial surveys of desert bighorn sheep in the Black Gap Wildlife Management Area when the crash occurred. It's unclear what caused the accident, officials said.

Killed in the crash were wildlife biologist Dewey Stockbridge, technician Brandon White and state wildlife veterinarian Dr. Bob Dittmar, the agency confirmed. The pilot, a private contractor, survived and subsequently hospitalized, officials said.

"No words can begin to express the depth of sadness we feel for the loss of our colleagues in this tragic accident," Carter Smith, executive director of Texas Parks and Wildlife, said in a prepared statement. "Wildlife conservation in Texas lost three of its finest as they so honorably and dutifully carried out their calling to help survey, monitor and protect the bighorns of their beloved west Texas mountains. All of us at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department send our deepest condolences and sympathies to the Stockbridge, White, and Dittmar families in the wake of this devastating tragedy and continue to pray for the health and recovery of the pilot."

The Black Gap Wildlife Management Area is located near the U.S.-Mexico border in Brewster County, some 300 miles southeast of El Paso.

Gov. Greg Abbott issued a statement on Sunday expressing condolences: “Our hearts ache today for those who died in this tragic accident. Cecilia and I are deeply saddened by this loss, and we extend our sympathies to the families and loved ones of the victims. I ask all Texans to keep these families in their thoughts and prayers.”

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