Search workers spot helicopter wreckage

Search workers spot helicopter wreckage

JAKARTA (JP): Search and rescue workers spotted the wreckage
of a helicopter in the thick jungle on a mountain slope in East
Kalimantan on Friday just as they were giving up their efforts to
trace a Sikorsky that had gone missing since July 26.

"The wreckage lies about nine kilometers northwest of a base
camp in Bulungan," Rusmana of the National Search and Rescue
Agency (Basarnas) in Jakarta said on Saturday. "There were no
signs of life around the wreckage."

He said it was not certain whether the wreckage belonged to
the Sikorsky, or of another helicopter that has been missing
since May.

The Sikorsky, owned by the private operator Air Fast Indonesia
and rented by a logging company, was carrying 18 people on board
when it disappeared on July 26 only five minutes after taking off
Tabang, the company's base camp.

The government had originally planned to abandon the search on
Wednesday but decided to extend it till Saturday at the
insistence of the logging company.

Now the search has been extended again after they spotted the
wreckage but because of the rough terrain, it might take a few
days before they can actually get to the site. "The officers have
to climb the steep mountain slopes and cut through thick jungles
to reach the location," Rusmana said.

The helicopter that went missing in May also belonged to Air
Fast and was carrying two people. (rms)