Two survive chopper accident in Papua
Two survive chopper accident in Papua
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Two out of five military officers aboard a missing military
helicopter in remote Paniai regency in Timika, Irian Jaya
province, were found alive on Sunday, after they had managed to
reach the nearest settlement, Kobae village, a two-hour walk from
the crash site, Antara reported.
The spokesman for Trikora Reginal Military Command, which
oversees the province, Maj. G.P. Situmorang, said the two --
First Lt. Ikhwan and First Lt. Tedy -- were suffering serious
injuries, while the fate of the other three Army officers,
including the Army's Bell BO-205 helicopter remained unclear.
"Since losing contact with the helicopter, we have been
searching for the passengers and the exact crash site.
"But, we have yet to detect the precise location," Situmorang
said, adding the Army, along with National Search and Rescue
Agency (Basarnas), would continue the search on Monday.
The missing officers are the pilot, First Lt. Yadi, mechanic
Sgt. Marsito and Chief Sgt. Keman.
Timika is the homebase of PT Freeport Indonesia, an American
copper and gold mining company.
As reported, the missing Bell helicopter, carrying five
military officers, took off from Timika on Saturday and headed
for Eranotali in Paniai regency. Twenty minutes after takeoff,
air traffic control in Timika reported it had lost contact with
the helicopter.
Meanwhile, AFP, quoting an unnamed officer at an airbase in
Timika, reported four victims had been found alive. The news
agency also said the wreckage of the helicopter was found and
that the four survivors had been taken to a nearby village.
A military rescue team was also sent by helicopter to the
crash site on Sunday but due to bad weather it had been unable to
land.
Last year, an Army helicopter also crashed in a remote jungle
area, near to the provincial capital of Jayapura. The bodies of
all of the fatalities, including former Trikora military
commanders Maj. Gen. Tonny Rompies and other senior officials of
the provincial administration were found days after the incident.