Surprised this hasn't been posted already but here's a link if you didn't already get your fill. http://www.komonews.com/news/local/News-helicopter-crashes-burns-beside-Space-Needle-250790281.html

Sad

Heard that on the radio new down here. Sad, were there high winds or other variables today?

Sad news. I'm guessing a mech failure of some kind. I've ridden with enough helo pilots to understand there are old pilots and bold pilots, but there are no old bold pilots. Those guys are uber-safety conscious.

It's also like bike and motorcycle riding in that it's not if you will ever crash, but when.

Sg

My first thought was dynamic rollover caused by a skid hanging up in something as they lifted off of the pad. This would be evidenced by the sudden pitch sideways witnesses report.

The spiraling towards the ground sounds more like loss of tail rotor authority, which could have happened (tr strike) as a result of the initial event, whatever that was.

Mechanical/engine failure seems like a pretty outside possibility considering the context. They had just landed, refueled, and were likely in a hurry to get back in the air.

Some witnesses say it struck something(building)
My guess was also tail rotor issues, hence the counterclockwise rotation as is went down.

Rotor strikes are by far the most common cause of helo mishaps, tail rotor strikes bein the most common of those.

It is incredible how quickly things can go bad in aviation.

I spent most of this last week reviewing helicopter mishaps and close calls as part of a work related training and it has been just about enough to make me wanna hang the flight helmet up. Lots of ways Murphy can get you in addition to plain old human error.

We were cutting a helispot in some dense trees in MT on a fire, and I remember taking off and watching as the rotor tips just barely clipped a fir branch tip. I puckered up, and the pilot cooly exclaimed, " you should have cut that one. It's a bit tight."