Search for crashed helicopter continues

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Source: CCTV.com | 06-03-2008 08:38

Search and rescue teams are still looking for a military transport helicopter that crashed on Saturday, in the mountains near the quake epicenter in Wenchuan county.

Militiamen search for a missing helicopter in the Zhaogong Mountain near Dujiangyan City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 2, 2008. A military transport helicopter engaging in quake relief work near Yingxiu Town was  missing on May 31. There were altogether 19 people on  board the helicopter, including five crew members and 14 injured local residents. (Xinhua Photo)

Several rescue helicopters continue to comb the area for the crashed chopper. The Mi-171 went down in an area of high mountains with dense forests, making the search mission difficult.

Yang Lei, Chief of staff of Chengdu Military Area Command "The helicopter's camouflage has the same colors as the mountain forests. Those are the colors of forests and mountains. It's very hard to locate the crashed helicopter."

To help with the search, rescue helicopters are using radiolocation equipment.

Meanwhile, thousands of troops and residents have joined the search on foot. Heavy rain on Sunday evening made their job more difficult.

Liu Fafeng, Commander of Jinan Military Area Command said "Since 6 p.m. on Saturday, we have dispatched 4300 soldiers divided into 100 teams for the blanket search operation. "

The Mi-171 helicopter crashed around 3 p.m. near Yingxiu Township. It was returning from a mission carrying epidemic prevention experts to Lixian County when it encountered strong turbulence and thick fog, losing contact with the command center.

Nineteen people were on board when it went down: five crew members and 14 injured local residents.

Editor:Xiong Qu