Rudraprayag (Uttarakhand): A previously damaged helicopter crashed into the hills of Kedarnath after getting detached from MI-17 in Uttarakhand's Kedarnath Dham on Saturday. The helicopter fell and sank in the Mandakini River.
The helicopter was being transported by the Army's MI-17. After flying for some distance, it snapped and slipped away with visuals captured by people on the ground showing it falling through the hills into the Mandakini River.
"There was a plan to take the helicopter to Gauchar airstrip on Saturday, with the help of Mi-17 aircraft, for repair. As soon as it covered a little distance, the Mi-17 started losing balance due to the weight of the helicopter and wind, due to which the helicopter had to be dropped near Tharu camp. There was no passenger or luggage on the helicopter. The rescue team reached the spot as soon as the information was received. The team is inspecting the situation," District Tourism Officer Rahul Chaubey said.
On May 24 this year, the helicopter had crashed during landing in Kedarnath Dham and suffered some damage. Due to a technical fault in the helicopter, an emergency landing had to be done 100 meters before the helipad. There were 6 passengers in the helicopter. However, there was no loss of life or property in the accident.
