Guwahati: Four persons died and three others are in critical condition after a mid-air accident between two helicopters in Australia, according to police, CNN said.
According to CNN: “The collision happened at around 2 pm local time near the popular tourist strip of Main Beach on the Gold Coast, south of Brisbane.”
Queensland Police Inspector Gary Worrell, a regional duty officer for the southeastern region, said: “Those two aircraft, when collided, crash-landed on the sandbank just out from Sea World Resort.” He said that emergency services found it difficult to access the sand bank.
The Queensland Ambulance Service’s Jayney Shearman said that there were a total of thirteen passengers on the two helicopters. Of the 13, four people died and three suffered serious injuries. Six passengers suffered minor cuts from broken glass.
She said that the hospital had received and treated all of the injured.
Debris is visible on a strip of beach in photographs taken at the scene of the accident. Numerous personnel are gathered on land, and there are many vessels in the nearby waters.
“Worrell said that though it’s too early to determine the exact cause of the accident, initial inquiries suggest one helicopter had been taking off and the other landing when they collided,” reported CNN.
According to CNN: “One helicopter “has its windscreen removed, and it landed safely on the island. The other (helicopter) crashed, and it was upside down,” Worrell said.”
Police from the area and members of the public flocked to the scene of the collision. They performed first aid while removing passengers from the chopper.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau’s (ATSB) Chief Commissioner, Angus Mitchell announced in a statement that an investigation into the crash had begun.
According to CNN, investigators from the ATSB’s Brisbane and Canberra offices would be dispatched to the scene to gather information, examine the debris, map the area and speak with witnesses and parties involved.
Mitchell urged anyone who saw the crash to get in touch with the authorities. According to him, the inquiry would be finished after six to eight weeks and a final report will be made accessible.
Six people were recently killed after two military aircraft from World War II collided in midair and crashed at an airshow in Dallas, Texas, according to CNN.
The two antique aircraft, a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and a Bell P-63 Kingcobra crashed during the Wings Over Dallas air display and more than 40 fire rescue units arrived on the scene.