Dehradun: 20 people died while a helicopter crashed on Tuesday in Uttarakhand. This helicopter was used by Air Force in rescue work in flood affected area of Uttarakhand. Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne had confirmed the news of this accident in which five were from Air Force and the other belonged to the National Disaster Response Force and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police. He said that Air Force tribute to officers who died in this accident and said that they are their guiding beacon.
The rescue team had found the bodies of 12 persons and 40 commanders are searching the narrow valley where the Russian-made Mi-17 helicopter crashed to find other. Weapons are being air-dropped to protect them against wild bears.
Officials said that helicopter was flying back from Kedarnath, the part of Uttarakhand that took the worst beating in the flash floods and landslide which have killed at least 1,000 since June 15. The death toll is expected to increase considerably when flood waters recede, revealing the true scale of the disaster in villages that have been cut off so far from rescuers.
Air chief said that it has not been clear the reason of crash of helicopter if the crash was caused by bad weather or technical problems.
He also said about the challenges his shoulders are confronting in the rescuing thousands of people by foot and air from remote regions despite rain, whorls of mist and tough Himalayan Terrain that their men take calculated risks and that is their job.
Air chief said, “I told my troops like in a war, you have to just keep going on.”
With 60 helicopters in service in Uttarakhand, this is the largest ever relief and rescue operation for the Air Force.
Bureau Report
Leave a Reply