3 of family from Maharashtra among 7 killed in Uttarakhand helicopter crash

A couple and their two-year-old daughter hailing from Yavatmal in Maharashtra were among the seven persons killed after a helicopter crashed near the Kedarnath shrine in Uttarakhand on Sunday, a former legislator said.

The helicopter took off from Kedarnath for Guptkashi around 5.30 am and crashed soon after above the forests of Gaurikund.

Five pilgrims, the pilot and an employee of the Badrinath-Kedarnath temple committee was among those killed, as per officials.

The deceased included Rajkumar Jaiswal, a transport businessman, his wife Shraddha, and their two-year-old daughter Kashi, hailing from Yavatmal, former Wani MLA Vishvas Nandekar told reporters.

Jaiswal along with his family members had left from Wani in Yavatmal on June 12 to visit the Lord Kedarnath temple, as per their family friends.

The crash site is located nearly 5 km above Gaurikund known as Gauri Mai Khark.

Sources said the chopper belonging to Aryan Aviation Pvt Ltd crashed between Gaurikund and Trijuginarayan in Kedarghati and caught fire.

Rudraprayag District Disaster Management Officer Nandan Singh Rajwar said zero visibility caused by bad weather apparently led to the crash.

The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) will probe the helicopter crash, a statement issued by the civil aviation ministry said.

The chopper crash comes days after an Air India flight to London crashed in Ahmedabad, killing 241 persons on board and several others on the ground.