Thu, May 11, 2006
Twelve Others Injured In Training Accident Caught On Tape
A simulated rescue operation turned tragically real Thursday in
the waters of the Sea of Okhotsk. A video crew could only watch
helplessly as a Russian Mi-14 helicopter impacted the water during
a training exercise, killing one of the 13 people onboard.
The helicopter was part of a joint oil spill and rescue exercise
conducted with Russian and Japanese forces off the Russian island
of Sakhalin, north of Hokkaido, according to Emergency Situations
Ministry spokesman Viktor Beltsov to Reuters.
CNN showed the video of the Mi-14 as, after orbiting for several
seconds, the helo dropped into the sea from about 20 feet above.
The amphibious helicopter landed flat, and bobbed in the waters for
several seconds before its tail lifted up and pitched the nose into
the water.
As the nose dropped, the spinning rotor blades impacted the
water... destroying the helicopter.
All 13 people onboard the Mi-14 -- identified by Beltsov as five
crew members and eight rescuers with Russia's civil aviation agency
-- were rescued from the wreckage. Three were injured -- and one of
them, a pilot, died on the way to the hospital.
At least some of those rescued were taken aboard a Japanese ship
participating in the exercise. Russian news agencies report
Japanese divers were involved in the rescue operation, and Russia's
RIA-Novosti reported at least one person was pulled from the
wreckage by them.
ITAR-Tass says the exercises involved seven Russian ships and
four helicopters, as well as three ships and one helicopter from
Japan.
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