12 killed as Ukraine helicopter crashes in Black Sea

Quote:
12 killed as Ukraine helicopter crashes in Black Sea Kiev
A Ukrainian helicopter crashed in the Black Sea on
Thursday killing twelve and leaving only one survivor, officials at
Ukraine's Border Troops command said.

It happened in the north-western Black Sea, near the mouth of the
Danube River.

A total 13 persons, 3 flight crew and 10 passengers, had been
aboard the aircraft at the time of the crash. Eleven of the dead were
border security staff, and other person killed was a civilian.

The identity of the single survivor was not immediately made
public.

The Ukrainian border troops Mi-8 helicopter had been carrying
personnel and two tonnes of supplies to Zmeyniy Island, a rocky
outcrop claimed by some 60 kilometres south of the Danube's mouth.

The flight from the mainland to Zmeyniy Island by Mi-8 lasts
approximately 45 minutes. It was not clear when exactly, or for what
reason, the helicopter had crashed.

The downed helicopter was visible in shallow water, and had
apparently almost reached the island before hitting the water,
witnesses said.

Two motor launches and a pair of helicopters participated in a
search of the area.

One of the helicopters carried the single survivor to a hospital
in Ukraine's Odesa province, where he was being treated for multiple
injuries and listed in "very serious condition."

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