Aircranes grounded after firefighting helicopter crashes into Gippsland dam
Six firefighting helicopters have been grounded across Australia after one of them crashed into a dam in eastern Victoria.
Key points:
The helicopter, nicknamed "Christine", was fighting fires just north of Mount Baw Baw
Three men on board were taken to hospital with minor injuries
Aircrane-model helicopters have been grounded in four states
Two pilots and one engineer were on board the Aircrane when it crashed into a dam at Jericho, in remote Gippsland, just after 7:00pm.
The three men managed to swim to the edge of the dam.
Emergency Management Commissioner Andrew Crisp said the chopper "landed heavily" and the crew was flown to the Latrobe Valley Hospital for treatment.
"They were examined for some minor injuries and shock, as you'd imagine, but I believe they've been released from hospital now," he told ABC Radio Melbourne.
He said the cause of the crash was not yet clear.
"I don't really want to speculate, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau has been notified, they'll have an investigator on the ground here this morning," Commissioner Crisp said.
Full story
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-01-...d-dam/10757292