ELLIS COUNTY -- Two fatalities have been confirmed in a helicopter crash in Ellis County.
Bell Helicopter confirmed two people were killed in the crash just before 12 p.m. on Wednesday. The National Transportation Safety Board said the crash occurred in Chambers Creek, Texas, about nine miles northwest of Corsicana.
The Texas Department of Public Safety says the first 911 call came in at 11:50 a.m.
Bell said in a statement its helicopter was "conducting developmental flight test operations on the Bell 525 at our Xworx facility in Arlington, Texas, that resulted in a helicopter accident."
A Bell spokesperson said there was one "chase" helicopter present as well, which is standard in test flight scenarios.
Lynn Lunsford with the Federal Aviation Administration says the helicopter had two people on board when it crashed at about 11:45 a.m. The helicopter was destroyed, Lunsford said.
No one on the ground was injured.
Investigators with the FAA are heading to the site, and the National Transportation Safety Board was notified.
Two farmers who witnessed the crash told News 8 they saw the helicopter flying from the northeast and came into contact with a transmission line.
Lonny Haschel with DPS says the helicopter did not strike the line and electricity transmission was unaffected.
An eyewitness who works at a nearby body shop told News 8 he heard two "booms" and saw the helicopter immediately descend.
He asked not to be identified.
"There was nothing the pilot could do," he said.
