China quake helicopter crashes with 14 on board

China quake helicopter crashes with 14 on board
# 01 June 2008 08:57 (UTC +04:00)
APA reports that no information on casualties was immediately available.
The crash highlights the ongoing challenges as China seeks to respond to a tragedy that has also left nearly 15 million people homeless and raised fears of epidemic outbreaks in affected areas.
The helicopter had ferried a team of military experts on disease outbreaks to Li county and was returning with the injured residents when it lost contact with ground command, Xinhua reported.
It later confirmed the chooper had crashed.
President Hu Jintao, touring quake-stricken areas in neighbouring Shaanxi province, immediately ordered a search and rescue operation, Xinhua said.
The overall death toll from the earthquake, China’s worst natural disaster in a generation, reached 68,977 on Saturday, with another 17,974 missing, the Government said.


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