A pilot is praised after landing a LifeNet helicopter safely just south of Council Bluffs Wednesday evening. The chopper hit power lines while taking off from Lewis Township with a patient on-board.

Now, we're learning more about how it happened. Air Methods Corporation owns the helicopter involved. Area Services Manager, Lyle Butler, showed Channel 6 News where the aircraft landed to pick up a head trauma patient, on Cardinal Lane near Overland Trail.

“And (they) loaded the patient up,” says Butler, “doing the patient care when the pilot lifted. And typically when the pilot lifts, they’re going to lift so they can lift out and go out without any issue. And when they did, the tail rotor did a surgical incision of one of the high line wires.”

Zella Duchman lives next to the scene and saw everything. "I was sitting right there in the window and all of a sudden it was just a big ball of fire just all over. And across the road and it burned in the field over here."

An arc of electricity caused those burns. Those in the area lost power briefly during the crash, and again about two hours later while Mid-America Energy repaired the lines.

The pilot landed on the roadway, as opposed to the wide-open field nearby, according to Butler, for good reason. For one, a firm surface like pavement is always preferable for safety reasons. “If we land out there then we've got to try to move the patient over the fence, a trauma patient, we don't want to move them any more than we have to,” Butler says, “So that was the best option."

Air Methods is transitioning to night vision for all their aircraft. Their chopper in Norfolk has it now. That technology is not yet on board the one that crashed, since it's normally used closer to a well-lit city.

A medic and a nurse were also on board, Butler says. "When the rotor starts turning it starts blowing things around, typically, people put their heads down at that point because they don't want to get stuff in their eyes, lose their hats, that kind of thing, so that's probably where they lost vision of the wires."

The pilot, whose name is not yet being released, never lost control. "I've flown with him quite a few years now. Excellent, excellent pilot, I would have no issue flying with him any day of the week," says Butler. Nobody was injured.

The patient, 51 year-old Patrick Slayden of Lewis Township, was taken by ambulance to Creighton University Medical Center with serious injuries from his fall, but not from the crash.

His neighbor tells Channel 6 News Slayden was on a ladder, hanging a Christmas star on his house, when he fell back hitting his head on the driveway. The patient’s condition was not released Thursday.

Damage to the $3 million helicopter was mostly cosmetic. “There’s in essence, probably, no damage to our aircraft,” says Butler. In fact, he says, it can still likely fly without problems. However, it will be hauled away instead Friday morning.

Repairs will be made at the Council Bluffs airport and it will have to clear an FAA inspection before going back in the air.

"It's very lucky," says Duchman of the ordeal. She just hopes Slayden will be okay.