Avalanche hits landed helicopter in Russia, 10 killed - Summary

Moscow - An avalanche smothered a landed helicopter on Russia's mountainous Kamtchatka peninsula on Saturday, killing at least five German snowboard enthusiasts and five of their helpers.

A party of 13 board users had paid to be taken up to the mountain slope in an Mi-8 helicopter and had just stepped out when the snowslide began. There are almost no roads in the wilderness areas of the peninsula on the Pacific coast.

Among the survivors, one crewman and a German sportsman were in hospital in critical condition.

In Moscow, the Health Ministry said two teams of doctors flew to the accident site at the Dukum Pass, 70 kilometers from the town of Yelisovo, the news agency Interfax reported.

Another news agency, Itar Tass, quoted the Kamchatka office of the Civil Defense Ministry saying 10 occupants had been confirmed dead. But no final toll had been issued by the end of Saturday.

The Flory Kern travel agency in Germany, which organized the heli-ski holiday, said the paying guests comprised nine Germans, one Belgian and one Russian. There had been one Russian and two German guides on board. The helicopter itself had had a crew of three.

Kamchatka is attracting growing numbers of western tourists thanks to its splendid scenery with volcanoes, glaciers and lakes. A snowboard, which resembles a wide ski, is used to glide over snow on steep slopes.

In Germany, a Bavarian police helicopter pilot said it was common for the beat of helicopter rotors to trigger avalanches.

"It's mainly from vibration caused by the noise," he said.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/318020,avalanche-hits-landed-helicopter-in-russia-10-killed--summary.html.