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Helicopter still missing - search contines.
Rescuers are continuing to search for a helicopter that has gone missing with 24 people on board in eastern Nepal. Those on board the missing helicopter, chartered by conservation group WWF, include a Nepalese minister, a Finnish diplomat and several Western aid workers.
Nepal's Tourism and Civil Aviation Minister Pradeep Gyawali has said bad weather is hampering helicopter search operations. "These helicopters have been forced to comb the area from higher altitude because of rain and fog cover in the area," he said. "They have not been able to take closer look or land in the area."
The search area is in a mountainous region covered with thick forests. Gyawali said a team of 90 soldiers and policemen have also been sent to the area on foot to assist another ground team already there.
WWF said in a statement that seven of its employees were among the missing, including four Nepalis, an Australian, a Canadian and an American. Several Nepali journalists, government officials and two Russian crew members were also on board.
The helicopter left Ghunsa village on Saturday morning but failed to arrive at Suketar village, its intended destination, a 20-minute flight away. Both villages are in the Taplejung district, about 310 miles east of Nepal's capital, Kathmandu.
The image at the top of this article is only to illustrate the type of helicopter missing and is NOT the actual one.
POSTED24/09/2006 @ 09:38:07 |
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