Society

Helicopter urgently lands in HK waters, 13 rescued

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-07-03 21:32

HONG KONG - A helicopter departing for Macao made an emergency landing in waters at Hong Kong Victoria Harbor on Saturday. All of 13 people on board were safely rescued.

At around 12:04 noon (GMT 4:04), the Sky Shuttle type AgustaWestland AW139 helicopter, flight no. EMU2, made an emergency landing at sea about 500 meters northwest of Shun Tak Center at Sheung Wan, Hong Kong Island shortly after taking off.

"The pilot heard a loud bang at the back and decided to land on the waters," Acting Director General of the Civil Aviation Department (CAD) Leung Yu-keung said at a press briefing on Saturday that they will send some of the fittings broken down from the wreckage to Italy, where the copter was manufactured, for investigation.

CAD will invite the participation of the accident investigation authorities of Macao and Italy. Leung said a preliminary report will be released within a month.

All of 13 people including 11 passengers and 2 pilots were rescued and rushed to the Queen Mary Hospital for treatment. No one was seriously hurt and had been discharged from the hospital later in the day.

"The service between Hong Kong and Macao is suspended until check-ups for all AW139 helicopters were done," said Leung.

Marine Police, Fire Services Department and Marine Department participated in the rescue operation. Marine traffic has not been affected by the accident, according to the city's Marine Department.