quarta-feira, 2 de julho de 2008

Nine dead in Siberian helicopter crash: officials

MOSCOW (AFP) — A civilian Mi-8 helicopter crashed in northwest Siberia on Wednesday killing at least nine people, Russia's Emergency Situations Ministry said.

"According to provisional information, there were 16 people on board, including three crew members. At least nine people died," ministry spokeswoman Natalya Lukash told AFP.

The Mi-8 helicopter operated by civilian airline UT-Air crashed in the oil-rich Yamalo-Nenets region of northwest Siberia, Lukash said.

Interfax news agency quoted a Federal Air Transport Agency official as saying there were only 13 people on board, but confirming the toll of nine dead. The official said one person was seriously injured and three suffered only minor injuries.

The cause of the crash was not immediately clear.

ITAR-TASS news agency reported that the helicopter caught fire after crashing en route from the city of Noyabrsk to the Varginskoye oil field.

A Soviet-era workhorse, the Russian-built Mi-8 helicopter can carry up to 20 people and is widely used to transport passengers and supplies to remote sites in Siberia.


Fonte: Flight Safety Information 02/07/2008.

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