Edmonton man paralyzed from waist down after helicopter crash near Camrose

Two weeks after a helicopter crashed near Camrose, the aircraft's pilot is recovering from a major spinal cord injury, relieved that the passengers he was carrying have also survived.

RCMP said on Jan. 23, a Bell 206B helicopter crashed around 10 a.m. in the woods in Flagstaff County, near Range Road 161 and Township Road 452.

In a news release two days later, the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE) said three government workers, who had been counting deer and moose for a wildlife management survey, were hospitalized after the crash. 

AUPE spokesperson Alexander Delorme told CBC News on Monday that the workers are recovering and in good spirits. One was released from hospital on Jan. 28, they said.

Sarel Hofmeyr, the helicopter's 46-year-old pilot, had spinal fusion surgery following the crash and is paralyzed from the waist down, according to Nicole Millest, a close family friend.

Occupational Health and Safety and Transport Canada are investigating the crash, which Millest said occurred when the helicopter was circling a herd of animals.

Millest said Hofmeyr was taken by STARS air ambulance to the University of Alberta Hospital in critical condition.

He lost consciousness for a time, but once conscious, he immediately started asking about the plane's passengers, she said.

"He was incredibly concerned about his passengers and he has expressed incredible relief that they are all doing well and that they're expecting a full recovery," she said. 

Doctors have told Hofmeyr he will not walk again.

Despite his condition and enduring a lot of pain over the past two weeks, he is being as positive as possible, making friends and family laugh, said Millest, who spoke with him over FaceTime.

Millest said Sarel and his wife, Jenny, immigrated to Canada from South Africa five years ago, in search of a more peaceful environment for their young son, Heinrich.

After spending a few years in Ontario, where they met Millest and her husband, the family moved west last year so Hofmeyr could take a job as a pilot with Delta Helicopters Ltd., outside of Edmonton. 

Though Hofmeyr had been a helicopter pilot in South Africa, becoming licensed in Canada took time and thousands of dollars of savings.