This image was created from a video showing the sandbank with the helicopter that crashed on the Gold Coast, Australia on Monday, January 2, 2023. Two helicopters collided Monday afternoon on an Australian beach . (Australian Broadcasting Corp. via AP)
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This image was created from a video showing the sandbank with the helicopter that crashed on the Gold Coast, Australia on Monday, January 2, 2023. Two helicopters collided Monday afternoon on an Australian beach. (Australian Broadcasting Corp. via AP)
AP
MELBOURNE, Australia — Two helicopters collided in an Australian tourist hotspot on Monday afternoon, killing four passengers and injuring three others in a crash that drew emergency help. from beachgoers enjoying the water during the southern summer.
Gary Worrell, acting inspector for Queensland state police, said one helicopter appeared to have taken off and the other had landed when they collided near the Sea World theme park in Main Beach, a beach north of Gold. Coast.
One helicopter landed safely on the sand, but debris from the other was scattered across an area that police described as difficult to access.
The dead and the three most seriously injured were all passengers on the crashed helicopter.
“People and police were trying to get people out and they started giving first aid and trying to get those people to safety from the upside down airframe,” Worrell said.
“(Everyone on) Jet Skis, family boaters, ordinary members of the public rushed to support these people.”
Passengers on the other helicopter, who lost their windshield in the crash, are also receiving medical assistance.
Footage of the crash shows one helicopter shortly after take-off being interrupted by another helicopter flying over the water.
A witness named John told Melbourne radio station 3AW that patrons at Sea World heard the crash.
He said staff at the amusement park quickly closed the areas closest to the accident.
“There was a big bang, very loud,” he said. “It was huge. I’m not sure if it was the propeller or something. But there was a poor woman and her son crying near the helipad.”
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the crash was an “unimaginable tragedy.
“My deepest sympathies go out to each family and everyone affected by this terrible accident,” she said.
Australian Transport Safety Bureau director Angus Mitchell said an investigation into the cause of the crash was underway.
Queensland Ambulance Service earlier said 13 people were being assessed for injuries.
The Gold Coast is busiest in January, the peak time for Australia’s summer holidays.
