A helicopter with five people on board crashed into the waters between the world-famous Ha Long Bay in the northern Vietnamese province of Quang Ninh and Lan Ha Bay in neighboring Hai Phong City on Wednesday, claiming the lives of four people and leaving another missing.

Pham Quang Hien, secretary of the Party Committee of Cat Hai District, Hai Phong City, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that four out of the five victims were tourists from Da Nang City in central Vietnam.

The Bell 505 helicopter involved in the incident was operated and managed by Northern Vietnam Helicopter Company under the Vietnam Helicopter Corporation and was piloted by Colonel Chu Quang Minh. 

It was carrying four Vietnamese tourists who wanted to see Ha Long Bay from above, according to the Ministry of National Defense.

The four tourists were Ho Ta Luc, Pham Thi Be, Nguyen Thi Hoi, and Ho Thi Oanh, aged between 59 and 65.

Of them, Hoi was Luc’s wife and Oanh was his older sister. The fourth tourist, Be, was a friend of the family.

The helicopter took off at 4:56 pm from Tuan Chau Island in Quang Ninh Province and lost contact at 5:04 pm.

At 5:15 pm, some local fishermen saw a helicopter explode and fall into the waters near Hon Net Island in Cat Hai District, Hai Phong, according to the Border Guard Command in Quang Ninh Province.

The Office of the National Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention, Search and Rescue said that the flight was the helicopter’s fourth on Wednesday.

Immediately after the crash, Northern Vietnam Helicopter Company coordinated with local border guards and military forces to search for the victims.

At 7:18 pm on the same day, two bodies and debris deemed to be from the helicopter were found at the water edge.

Meanwhile, the body of the pilot was found at 1:30 am on Thursday morning and the fourth body was found at 10:15 am the same day.

Rescuers are searching for the remaining missing tourist.

According to the Search and Rescue Operations Department under the Ministry of National Defense, some 600 people, including border guards, coast guards, naval forces, and other forces, aided by 31 ships and speedboats, have been mobilized for the search and rescue operation.

The Bell 505 helicopter, which had five seats, was used for aerial tours over Ha Long Bay.

These tours typically last for 10 minutes, taking tourists to see Tuan Chau, Dau Go, Ga Choi, Titop Islands, Bai Tu Long Bay, and Reu Island before returning to Tuan Chau Island.

The new-generation helicopter manufactured by Bell Helicopter in 2018 was certified safe by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency.

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