Roll of Honor
Incident
Officer Gayle Wood and Officer James McCabe were killed when their helicopter struck a power line support tower, which was not visible in the darkness. They were finishing up their air patrol around 7:30 p.m. when the accident occurred near Castaic Lake on I-5. Officer Wood had served with the California Highway Patrol for ten years and had been a pilot for five years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-CA-FB1DA6B6- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- August 2, 2026
- Last updated
- August 2, 2026
Honored here by 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Officer Wood gave the California Highway Patrol 10 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of California. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Officer Wood.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Officer Gayle W. Wood Jr. is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.
In CA, 719 of 1,837 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 39.1% of this state's fallen. That is 39.1 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.
At California Highway Patrol, 151 of 233 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 64.8% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Gayle W. Wood Jr.'s cause is highlighted.
How Gayle W. Wood Jr. Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Gayle W. Wood Jr. is highlighted in Sep.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
232 officers from California Highway Patrol are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
