Helicopter tour carrying 6 people crashes in Hawaii lava field

A vacationer helicopter crashed on Wednesday in a lava discipline in Hawaii, injuring all six individuals on board who had been evacuated safely from the location, officers stated.

The preliminary report got here in about 5 p.m. and stated the plane had crashed close to the southernmost tip of the Large Island, stated Cyrus Johnasen, a public data officer for Hawaii County.

The helicopter was carrying a pilot and 5 passengers. Johnasen stated the pilot, a person in his 50s, had been trapped however was later extracted and was in critical however secure situation. An 18-year-old girl was reported in critical and worsening situation. 4 individuals had been reported as ambulatory. 

One of many passengers, a 48-year-old man, managed to stroll from the crash website, based on KHON-TV.

Photographs taken by rescuers confirmed the Bell 407 helicopter crashed within the lava discipline. The location was inaccessible by car so the Hawaii Hearth Division despatched two helicopters to take victims to ambulances ready on close by roads.

“It’s a fluid state of affairs,” Mayor Mitch Roth stated. 

No data was instantly launched on what brought on the crash.

The climate within the space in regards to the time included winds of about 16 mph, gusts of about 23 mph, and a few scattered or damaged clouds, Thomas Vaughan, a meteorologist with the Nationwide Climate Service, advised KHON-TV.

“Normal, afternoon climate on the Large Island,” he stated.

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This story was reported from Cincinnati. The Related Press contributed.