Debris found in search for 2 missing after Kauai tour copter crash

COURTESY PA2 TY ROBERTSON / U.S. COAST GUARD The Coast Guard is searching today for two of the three people who were aboard a tour helicopter that crashed off Kauai’s Na Pali Coast Thursday afternoon.

1 /1 COURTESY PA2 TY ROBERTSON / U.S. COAST GUARD The Coast Guard is searching today for two of the three people who were aboard a tour helicopter that crashed off Kauai’s Na Pali Coast Thursday afternoon.

UPDATE : 4 :15 p.m.

Kauai police confirmed that the pilot of the tour helicopter that crashed Thursday is a resident and the two passengers on board were mainland visitors, at a joint Kauai County and Coast Guard news conference this afternoon.

The Coast Guard said that a Hawaii National Guard H60 Black Hawk helicopter joined the search today.

The Coast Guard and the county resumed the use of their assets this morning in the search for two of the three individuals who were on board the helicopter.

Police would not identify which of the three individuals was found Thursday.

The Kauai Fire Department said the body was recovered a quarter mile offshore along the Na Pali Coast. An oil slick and small pieces of floating debris were also found in the area of the crash site.

When asked whether sharks near the wreckage were a concern, the fire chief said that rescue personnel are taking their presence into consideration.

The Coast Guard said that a temporary flight restriction zone is in effect in the area, but there is no restriction on tour vessel activity.

1 :50 p.m.

Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke, as acting governor, signed an emergency proclamation at 11 :43 a.m. today to authorize the state Adjutant General to activate the Hawaii National Guard to deploy state resources to help in the search of the two missing people.

The resources include aviation assets as needed to respond to the crash, “and to maintain public health and safety in the County of Kauai, Lt. Gov. Luke said in a news release in her capacity as acting governor.

She said “the state stands fully prepared to work in tandem ” with the county and the state’s federal partners.”

Kauai Mayor Derek Kawakami said, “Mahalo to Acting Gov. Sylva Luke and all of our partnering state agencies for their assistance during the ongoing search and recovery efforts here on Kauai in response to this devastating incident.”

Luke said : “We extend our deepest condolences to the loved ones of those involved in this terrible incident.”

PREVIOUS COVERAGE The Coast Guard is continuing the search today for two of the three people who were aboard a tour helicopter that crashed off Kauai’s Na Pali Coast Thursday afternoon.

The body of one person was recovered Thursday by Kauai Ocean Safety lifeguards.

The National Transportation Safety Board said today its personnel are investigating the crash of a Robinson R44 helicopter that went down around 1 :15 p.m.. The preliminary information shows that the aircraft was operating as an air tour flight and crashed into the ocean a mile north of the Na Pali Coast.

County officials said the crash was off the remote Hanakoa Valley.

“Once the aircraft is recovered, an NTSB investigator will arrive on scene to begin the process of documenting the scene and examining the aircraft, ” NTSB officials said in a statement. “The aircraft will then be recovered to a secure facility for further evaluation.”

The Coast Guard Sector Honolulu command center received a report of a crash from Kauai Fire Department personnel at 1 :40 p.m. Thursday off the coast. A hiker along the Kalalau Trail, who witnessed the crash into the water, notified the fire department.

The Coast Guard’ sent an HC-130J Super Hercules airplane and an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point, a 45-foot Response Boat-Medium crew from Coast Guard Station Kauai, and the crew of Coast Guard Cutter Joseph Gerczak, a 154-foot Sentinel-class cutter from Honolulu.

Kauai Ocean Safety Bureau lifeguards sent rescue watercraft from Hanalei Bay and recovered an unresponsive person from the water.

The Kauai Fire Department responded with an Air 1 helicopter crew, Zodiac rescue watercraft crews, and Ocean Safety officers on rescue watercraft.

The helicopter, a Robinson R44 from the Ali’i Kauai Air Tours and Charters company in Kauai, had one pilot and two passengers aboard.

Anyone with information that may assist search efforts should contact the Coast Guard at 808-842-2603.

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