A MILITARY helicopter carrying four soldiers has crashed near an army base, according to a defence spokesperson.

The Black Hawk came down at around 9pm near the Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state.

Four special operations soldiers are understood to have been on board when it crashed.

Reports claim the chopper came down around 35 miles west of the base.

It is not yet known if there were any casualties.

The Thurston County Sheriff’s Department were called out to reports of an explosion in the area.

A spokesperson said: “Deputies have located what is believed to be the scene.

“We have been advised that the military lost contact with a helicopter in the area, and we are working closely with JBLM to deploy any resources needed to assist.

“Deputies located the crash site but have been unable to continue rescue efforts as the scene is on fire and is starting to overheat their footwear.”

Army Special Operations Command has described the horror crash as a “mishap”.

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The troops on board are believed to be in the hardened “Night Stalkers” special operations regiment.

“Four service members assigned to the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) were on board an MH-60 Black Hawk helicopter involved in an aviation mishap in a rural area near Joint Base Lewis-McChord,” a spokesperson said.

“This remains an active, ongoing situation.”

They added that the terrain where the Black Hawk crashed is “hard to reach”.

A fire sparked by the crash has reportedly smothered up to one acre of land.

Back in March, another helicopter crashed at the same base during a training exercise.

Two army pilots were injured when the chopper came down.

Colonel Bryen Freigo said at the time: “The two crew members were medically evacuated to Madigan Army Medical Center for evaluation and treatment and remain at the hospital in stable condition.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with these families and soldiers during their recovery.”