Fruit Industry Leader Killed In Helicopter Crash

Michael Monson, president of Monson Fruit Co. in Selah, WA, was killed in a helicopter crash Saturday during a fishing trip on a remote river in British Columbia, Canadian authorities told the Yakima (WA) Herald.

Monson, 48, was the only fatality among five others in the helicopter that went down near Bute Inlet, roughly 62 miles northeast of the remote city of Campbell River, according to a news release Monday from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

The helicopter crashed to the ground before overturning into the Homatico River, police said. Local news outlets reported that the crash occurred about 4:30 p.m.

According to a statement from the Monson family, Michael Monson was on a company fishing trip.

Monson oversaw his family’s Selah-based fruit company that grows and processes more than 3,000 acres of cherries and pears and 500 acres of apples each year. His family started the business in 1987, according to a statement issued by the family.

The Yakima Herald news story can be found here.