SHANGHAI, April 12 (Xinhua) -- Rescuers have lifted
out of water the wreckage of a helicopter which served China's Antarctic
exploration ship, Xuelong.
The plane crashed in the East China Sea off Shanghai
Sunday, two days after Xuelong returned to the city from its Antarctic mission.
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The wreckage of a helicopter from
China's Antarctic exploration ship Xuelong is hoisted up almost a nautical
mile from its crash site in the East China Sea off Shanghai, April 12,
2009. (Xinhua Photo)
Photo Gallery>>> |
The wreckage was out of water at 10:55 p.m. Sunday,
about two and a half hours after divers found the wreckage almost a nautical
mile from the crash site, said Sun Fumin, director of the East China Sea Rescue
Bureau of the Ministry of Transport.
The rescue boat shipped the wreckage to a nearby
port. The search for the missing mechanic was continuing, Sun said.
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.
The helicopter made an emergency landing from a
height of about50 meters and floated on the sea for a couple of minutes before
sinking.
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The wreckage of a helicopter from
China's Antarctic exploration ship Xuelong is hoisted up almost a nautical
mile from its crash site in the East China Sea off Shanghai, April 12,
2009. 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. Sunday,
said a spokesman for the China Marine Search and Rescue Center. Three were
rescued and rushed to hospital and the search for the missing mechanic was
continuing, the spokesman said. (Xinhua Photo)
Photo
Gallery>>> |
Three, including the pilot, co-pilot and a mechanic,
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.
Zhang added that the one in intensive care also was
out of danger after regaining consciousness from short coma.
More than 10 rescue boats were involved in the search
for the missing mechanic, Yang Yongchang, and the helicopter, Sun said.
"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 wreckage of a helicopter from
China's Antarctic exploration ship Xuelong is hoisted up almost a nautical
mile from its crash site in the East China Sea off Shanghai, April 12,
2009. 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. Sunday,
said a spokesman for the China Marine Search and Rescue Center. Three were
rescued and rushed to hospital and the search for the missing mechanic was
continuing, the spokesman said. (Xinhua Photo)
Photo
Gallery>>> |
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.
But the exact cause of the crash is yet to be
determined. The Harbin Aircraft Industry Group Co. and its subsidiary, China
Flying Dragon Special Aviation Company, owner of the plane, have sent staff to
assist the investigation.
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.
The helicopter flew more than 153 hours during the
just-concluded Antarctic expedition. It also had assisted two more scientific
expeditions to the Antarctic and North Pole from 2007 to 2008.
Wreckage of crashed helicopter found
in East China Sea
SHANGHAI, April 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese rescuers have found the wreckage of a
helicopter from China's Antarctic exploration ship, Xuelong, which crashed in
the East China Sea off Shanghai Sunday.
The wreckage was found almost a nautical mile from the
crash site at about 8:20 p.m., said Sun Fumin, director of the East China Sea
Rescue Bureau of the Ministry of Transport. Full story
