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Helicopter Collision Over Australia’s Gold Coast Kills 4 Passengers
(CTN NEWS) – MELBOURNE, Australia – A helicopter collision caused four deaths and three critical injuries in an Aussie tourist hotspot Monday afternoon, requiring emergency assistance from beachgoers enjoying the water in the southern summer.
At a news conference, Gary Worrell, Queensland state police acting inspector, said the two helicopters appeared to have been taking off and landing near the Sea World theme park in Main Beach.
The debris from the other helicopter was spread across an area police described as difficult to access after the first helicopter landed on a sandbank.
Emergency workers inspect a helicopter at a collision scene near Seaworld, on the Gold Coast, Australia, Monday, Jan. 2, 2023. Two helicopters collided, killing several passengers and critically injuring a few others in a crash that drew emergency aid from beachgoers enjoying the water during the southern summer. (Dave Hunt/AAP Image via AP)
All four people who died and three of the most seriously injured were passengers in the helicopter that crashed.
The public and police attempted to remove the people, administer first aid, and get them to safety from an upside-down aircraft, Worrell said.
People on Jet Skis, family boaters, and ordinary public members rushed to help them.”
Medical assistance is also being provided to passengers in the other helicopter, which lost its windscreen in the crash.
During the crash, footage showed a helicopter clipped by another flying over the water shortly after takeoff.
This image made from a video shows a sand island with a crashed helicopter, victims and emergency services on Gold Coast, Australia, Monday, Jan. 2, 2023. Two helicopters collided in the Australian tourist hotspot Monday afternoon. (CH9 via AP)
A company separate from Sea World Helicopters expressed its condolences and said it cooperated with authorities investigating the crash.
A statement released by the FAA expressed its deepest condolences to all those involved, especially the loved ones and families of the deceased.
Due to the ongoing investigation, the company did not confirm whether it operated one or both helicopters involved in the crash.
It was reported by a witness named John to Melbourne radio station 3AW that patrons at Sea World heard the crash.
He said that staff at the theme park closed off the closest areas immediately after the crash.
Emergency workers inspect a helicopter at a scene of collision near Seaworld, on the Gold Coast, Australia, Monday, Jan. 2, 2023. Two helicopters collided killing several passengers and critically injuring a few others in a crash that drew emergency aid from beachgoers enjoying the water during the southern summer. (Dave Hunt/AAP Image via AP)
“There was a massive bang,” he said. “It was just enormous.”. I’m not sure if it was the propellers hitting each other. There was a poor woman and her son crying near the helipad.”
The accident was an “unthinkable tragedy,” according to Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.
“My deepest sympathies go out to every family affected by this terrible accident,” she said.
Angus Mitchell, chief commissioner of the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, said an investigation was underway into the crash’s cause.
The Queensland Ambulance Service reported that 13 people were being assessed for injuries earlier.
As Australia’s summer approaches, the Gold Coast region is at its busiest in January.
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