Pilots survive after two helicopters crash into rural Polk swamp

SkyFOX was over the scene after the helicopter crashed into a swampy field on Thursday afternoon.

FORT MEADE, Fla. - A Polk County Sheriff’s Office helicopter crash-landed into a swampy field this afternoon while responding to an earlier gyrocopter crash.

The scene of both crashes is on a rural portion of Mosaic property in the Fort Meade area, not far from County Line Road East and Manley Road.

The view from SkyFOX showed the yellow gyrocopter sitting in the swampy field with a bent rotor. The PCSO helicopter was visible just a few yards away, on its side with its tail boom broken.

Emergency crews tried but apparently failed to reach the pilots via airboats. Both remain OK, according to a sheriff’s office spokesperson.

“The area where they are is extremely rural, wet, and mucky. We are trying to rescue them with assistance from several other agencies,” a PCSO update noted.