Fourteen people died and eight more were seriously injured after a Russian-made helicopter tackling a forest blaze crashed in a remote part of Mongolia.
ULAN BATOR: Fourteen people died and eight more were seriously injured after a Russian-made helicopter tackling a forest blaze crashed in a remote part of Mongolia, officials said on Monday.
The chopper was the same model as one that crashed in 2001 killing nine people, including UN staff and foreign journalists. The MI-8 helicopter, which was battling the blaze in Mongolia's northern Selenge province, had been missing since last Thursday.
The 19 firefighters, along with three crew members, were on a mission to tackle the blaze which had been raging since June 7.
The helicopter crashed into dense forest on a mountain at an altitude of 6,100 feet and was found by two rescue helicopters on Saturday, Emergency Minister S. Otgonbayar said.
"The area was foggy, and smoke was coming out from the site. We saw first yellow flags tied to the body of the wreckage," he said.
All of those on board were Mongolian. Among the dead were firefighters and members of the helicopter crew.
One crew member and seven firemen, aged between 20 and 59, survived the crash and arrived in hospital in Ulan Bator on Monday in serious conditions, with head and abdominal injuries, a hospital official said.
"All are also suffering... because they were in the wild for almost three days," said S. Otgongeral, director of the hospital where the survivors are being treated.
Government spokesman B. Batbaatar said the reason for the crash had not been established and an investigation was underway, although he added fog may have been a factor.
Mongolian investigators concluded that the fatal crash in 2001 was caused by overloading and pilot error, according to previous Chinese state media reports.
A Mongolian member of parliament, three UN staff members and two Japanese journalists were among those killed in 2001 as they were on their way to inspect relief needs following a harsh winter.
The MI-8 is the main transport helicopter in Mongolia, both for civilian and military use.
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