Helicopter with 14 on board crashes in Russia: officials

MOSCOW – At least, 14 people were missing on Monday, after their helicopter crashed in the Russian Far East, officials said, the latest aviation tragedy to hit the country.

The Mi-8 helicopter carrying firefighters crashed near the village of Chekunda in the Khabarovsk region.

A spokeswoman for regional prosecutors, Oxana Polshanova, said the fate of the passengers remained unknown.

Aviation crashes are frequent in Russia and are often blamed on ageing aircraft and poor maintenance.

The Russian Voice, says however, that there were 17 people in the Mi-8 helicopter which crashed in the Khabarovsk Territory, quoting a spokeswoman for the Far East Regional Center of the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry Mariya Potvorova.

“The preliminary information is that there were 17 people, including the crew, on board. The helicopter crashed 50 kilometers from the village of Chekunda. So far there is no data about deaths and injuries,” the spokeswoman said. http://bit.ly/1k58JIQ

She said there was no information about the helicopter’s itinerary and owner either.

AFP/TheNewsNigeria