By Joe Trinacria
The Philadelphia Inquirer
TRENTON, N.J. — A retired New York City police officer was killed when his helicopter crashed and was engulfed in flames Saturday in an abandoned field near Trenton, police said.
The helicopter went down at about noon at the corner of Clarksville and Quakerbridge Roads on the former property of American Cyanamid, an agricultural research site, in West Windsor Township.
The victim was identified as Michael Scarfia, 65, of Staten Island, N.Y.
“Scarfia dedicated his life to the city of New York as a police officer, and by diverting his failing helicopter into the cornfield and away from crowded shopping malls, he again showed his bravery and dedication to others,” West Windsor police said in a statement.
Several witnesses reported hearing grinding noises and possible explosions shortly before the crash occurred. Authorities say the helicopter burst into flames upon impact, but no one on the ground was injured.
“My wife and I had just gotten out of the car when we noticed a small 5-7 passenger helicopter flying above us around 2,000 feet,” said Jay Bryant, 53, a West Windsor resident, who witnessed the events leading up to the wreckage in a nearby shopping center parking lot. “It suddenly went into a nose-down dive, and as it was going down the main rotor fell off.”
“I didn’t hear any noise from the crash or anything after that, but people began to notice a large plume of black smoke coming from the direction of the old research center.”
The cause of the crash was not immediately known, and Scarfia was believed to be only person on board.
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