Influencer in tears as her husband is injured in icy reservoir helicopter crash that killed his best friend

Jennifer Houghton, who has more than one million followers on her Instagram page called Turtle Creek Lane, said that her husband Steve has been badly injured after the helicopter he was riding in plummeted in to icy water.

The chopper went in to the ice at Ririe Reservoir near Idaho Falls on Thursday afternoon (February 20). Steve’s “cherished lifelong friend”, medical device CEO Bradford ‘Brad’ Brown, who was with him died in the incident. Steve, of Texas, survived with non-life-threatening injuries and was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment.

Mum-of-five Jennifer first shared a photo of her husband Steve and their children surrounding his hospital bed on Friday (February 21). “We are heartbroken to share that Steve was a passenger in a helicopter that crashed yesterday,” she wrote. “He and one of his dearest, lifelong friends were exploring God's beautiful creations when tragedy struck. We are grateful Steve survived and is recovered; however, we are devastated by the loss of his cherished friend in this heartbreaking accident. Right now, our family is focused on healing and processing this unimaginable loss.”

In a series of Instagram Stories that followed, Jennifer spoke about how the day of the incident unfolded after she learned what happened. The Mormon Dallas based influencer explained how she'd been alerted to the crash by an iPhone alert which she first ignored.

“On Thursday around 5:30pm, Steven, Kimmy, Tiffany, Adam, and I were at dinner with close family friends when I received a "crash" notification on my phone. At first, I didn't think much of it. Ever since the latest Apple update, we've had more than our fair share of false alarms. But then I noticed - it wasn't coming from Steve's phone. It was from Brad's helicopter. My heart dropped,” she said.

The family tried to contact 61-year-old Steve and Brad, aged 59, hoping they’d answer the phone and tell them the notification was a mistake. “The minutes dragged on. Then, we finally located the GPS signal of our friend's helicopter - the one Steve was in. The location showed a reservoir,” Jennifer went on. “Moments later, my phone rang with an unknown number with an Idaho area code. A man was on the other end. His voice was steady but uncertain. ‘There's been a crash’.”

Jennifer added that she later learned the caller wasn't a medical professional, but “just a stranger, a Good Samaritan, who had been out snowmobiling when he came upon the wreckage.”

She continued: “My whole world went into free fall. I barely remember anything after Steven took the phone. Time blurred. I must have been holding my breath because I only remember the moment Steven finally looked at me and delivered the news ‘dad is alive but Brad didn't make it'.”

The family used a private jet to rush to Idaho Falls Regional Airport, before heading straight to the hospital.

Jennifer also explained what she felt like upon arrival at the hospital. “Walking through those front doors felt like stepping into a dream. Everything around me was moving in slow motion-the voices around me seemed muffled, the lights too bright, the air too cold. My body was there, but my mind was somewhere else, running through all the unknowns,” she wrote.

She late shared the news that her husband has suffered five broken ribs in the crash, but had been allowed to leave the hospital after two and a half days of treatment to continue his recovery at home. She added: “ Steve has a long road ahead, physically and emotionally.”

Alongside the updates, she also shared a series of photos, including some of her and Steve in the hospital, different family members and also Steve and Brad. In one photo, Jennnifer is seen in tears as she cuddles a baby.

Brad, who was weeks away from his milestone 60th birthday, was pronounced dead at the scene following the crash on the frozen Idaho reservoir. Bonneville County Sheriff's Deputies confirmed he died instantly when his aircraft crashed approximately a mile east of the dam.

In a press release, the Bonneville Sheriff's office wrote: “First responders deployed on snow machines from the Juniper Campground area, locating the crash site more than a mile east of the dam and two occupants who were inside. One occupant was deceased at the scene and a second was transported back to an awaiting ambulance before being taken to the hospital for non-life threatening injuries.”

Brad was a pilot. According to his online biography, he flew both helicopters and airplanes and had over 4,200 hours of experience.

Local flight data identified the helicopter involved in the fatal crash as a Bell 505 Jet Ranger X. Brad's flight departed from Rexburg, a city in Madison County, Idaho, at around 4.20pm on the day of the crash. Just twenty minutes after take-off, multiple emergency agencies responded alongside Bonneville County Sheriff's Deputies to reports of a helicopter crash on the ice at Ririe Reservoir. It is not known at the time of writing how the helicopter came to crash.

As CEO and founder of ATL Technologies, a company that manufactures medical devices, Brad had amassed a fortune estimated to be nine figures. Steve is said to be worth $100million.

ATL said in a statement: “Our close-knit family at ATL is devastated by the tragic loss of our founder. He was visionary, passionate, and dedicated to ATL, the life sciences industry and above all, his family and community,' the statement read. 'It goes without saying he leaves an indelible mark on ATL and the global life sciences industry.”