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A rescuing helicopter flies over China's Antarctic exploration ship "Xuelong" near the estuary of the Yangtze River in east China April 12, 2009. A mechanic was missing and the three other crew members were rescued after the helicopter taking off from China's Antarctic exploration ship "Xuelong" crashed into the East China Sea off Shanghai Sunday. Four crew members, all men, were aboard the helicopter when it crashed near the estuary
of the Yangtze River, said a spokesman for the China
Marine Search and Rescue Center. (Xinhua/Chen Fei)
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SHANGHAI,
April 12 (Xinhua) -- A mechanic is missing after a helicopter from China's
Antarctic exploration ship, Xuelong, crashed in the East China Sea off Shanghai
Sunday.
Four crew members, all men, were aboard the
helicopter when it crashed near the estuary of the Yangtze River at about 11:20
a.m., said a spokesman for the China Marine Search and Rescue Center.
Three were rescued and rushed to hospital, the
spokesman said.
"One man is in serious condition and the other two are stable, "Zhang Guotong, president of the Shanghai Municipal No. 7 People's Hospital, told Xinhua.
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Rescuers search for a missing mechanic and a crashed helicopter near the estuary of the Yangtze River in east China April 12, 2009.(Xinhua/Chen Fei))
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More than 10 rescue boats were involved in the search
for the missing mechanic, Yang Yongchang, and the helicopter, which sank, said
Sun Fumin, director of the East China Sea Rescue Bureau of the Ministry of
Transport.
"The water is muddy and it is getting dark, which
increase difficulties for the search," Sun said. "We have to redouble the
efforts and use advanced equipment."
The ship-based helicopter was rented by the Xuelong,
or "Snow Dragon," which was moored at a Shanghai dock at the time of the
accident. The helicopter crashed just a minute after taking off from the vessel,
according to the China Marine Search and Rescue Center.
"Thick fog shrouded the sky when the crash happened," said a spokesman with the Shanghai frontier defense inspection authorities.
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A ship and three boats attend a rescue mission for a crashed helicopter from China's Antarctic exploration ship "Xuelong" near the estuary of the Yangtze River in east China, on April 12, 2009. (Xinhua/Chen Fei))
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But the exact cause of the crash is yet to be
determined.
Carrying 140 scientists, technicians and crew, the
Xuelong left Shanghai in October for a 173-day trip, the longest in China's
Antarctic expedition history.
The expedition team had successfully erected a new
research station at Dome Argus (Dome A), the pole's highest icecap at
4,093meters above sea level.
They left China's Zhongshan Station for home on March
9 and arrived at Shanghai on April 10.
