Saturday 31 August 2024 – 10:05
A fire-fighting helicopter crashed into the Douro River (northern Portugal) on Friday, local authorities said, stating that the pilot had survived while the other five passengers were still missing.
The missing persons are members of National Gendarmerie’s Emergency Protection and Rescue Unit (UEPS), the national civil protection authority said in a statement.
“Our team is still missing and the search is ongoing”, while the pilot, a civilian, was “found alive” and suffering from minor injuries, gendarmerie spokeswoman Mafalsa Almeida told the press.
The helicopter crashed in the Lamego region at around 12:30 local time (11:30 GMT) on its way back from a fire near Baiao (northwest of Lamego).
