Helicopter crash on Great Barrier Reef kills 2 US tourists

Thursday, March 22, 2018

A helicopter carrying American tourists crashed at the iconic Great Barrier Reef of Australia, the internationally renowned coral-viewing site killing two passengers from Hawaii and injuring two others from Colorado, as per the police.

The helicopter pulled one of the passengers from the wreckage after the crash of Wednesday.

However though efforts to rescue and revive the 65-year-old woman were initiated, they eventually failed according to Ian Haughton, the Police Inspector. A 79-year-old man also died though the bystanders made many attempts to resuscitate him.

Thereafter a 34-year-old man and a 33-year-old woman were transferred to the Australian mainland for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.

All four tourists new each other.

The five-seat, single-engine Eurocopter EC120 Colibri crashed 65 kms that is about 40 miles from the north-eastern portion of Whitsunday Islands close to a pontoon with underwater viewing chambers to see coral and is quite a favorable tourist destination.

The U.S. Embassy that is present in Australia mentioned in a statement that it was aware that two U.S. citizens had died and was offering all kinds of ‘consular assistance’.

Whitsunday Air Services said that the helicopter was approaching the pontoon to land when it suddenly crashed.

The company had suspended operations since it works with authorities to determine the cause of the crash. The company asserted in a statement that they were saddened by this incident and would like to extend their condolences to the families of the passengers.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau confirmed that a crash investigation was underway.

Add Media

« Back to Page