Another helicopter crashes while fighting fires in South Korea, pilot dies

(CLO) A firefighting helicopter crashed on the afternoon of April 6 while participating in controlling a forest fire in Daegu city, southeastern South Korea, killing the pilot.

The accident occurred at 3:41 p.m. on a mountain in Buk County (northwest of the city), about 230 km from the capital Seoul.

According to the local fire department, the forest fire started at 3:12 a.m. in the Buk district. The forestry department dispatched five helicopters to put out the fire, including the crashed aircraft.

Before the helicopter crashed, at around 3:30 a.m., the Buk District Office sent an urgent warning to residents, asking them to stay away from nearby mountain areas and asking hikers to exercise extreme caution.

A firefighting helicopter collects water from a reservoir as wildfires rage in southeastern South Korea. Photo: North Gyeongsang Province Fire Department

The fire is believed to have started in a field before spreading rapidly up the hillside, and authorities are still assessing the damage caused by the fire.

This helicopter crash has made the Korean people even more worried, as just a few weeks ago, on March 22, a large forest fire broke out in Unhwa-ri (Onyang-eup), burning more than 930 hectares of forest and taking 5 days to be completely controlled.

That incident also saw a helicopter crash and the pilot killed in action.

South Korea has been hit by a series of devastating wildfires that have killed at least 30 people and destroyed dozens of homes and structures. Authorities are considering raising the fire risk alert as dry weather and strong winds continue.

Ngoc Anh (according to Yonhap, Korea Joongang Daily)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/them-mot-truc-thang-roi-khi-cuu-hoa-o-han-quoc-phi-cong-tu-nan-post341683.html