A helicopter crashed into the roof of a Hilton hotel in Cairns, Australia, igniting a blaze on top of the building and forcing it to be cleared. Hundreds of patrons were inside. Police said the pilot died.
Police in Cairns said a helicopter crashed into the roof of a Hilton hotel in the city, starting a fire and forcing hundreds of patrons out of the building as a precaution.
The crash took place at around 1:50 a.m. local time on Monday.
Pilot declared dead at scene, debris fell to ground
“The pilot and single occupant of the aircraft was located and declared deceased at the scene, and forensic investigations are underway to formally identify him,” Cairns police said in a statement.
Police also said that there were no injuries on the ground.
According to news agency Reuters, police said that the helicopter had been taken from its hangar for an “unauthorized flight”.
Further details from the authortities were awaited.
Australia’s ABC also quoted Nautilus Aviation, the company that owned the helicopter, as saying that the use of the chopper was “unauthorized”.
Pieces of the helicopter’s rotor blades landed in the Double Tree Hotel pool, an emergency services official said.
A fire could be seen burning on top of the building following the incident but appeared to be extinguished by daybreak.
Hotel guests said they had been woken by a large bang and soon heard alarms sounding and calls to vacate the building, with emergency services quickly on the scene.
ABC cited an aviation expert as saying the area around the hotel was a no-fly zone for most low-flying aircraft and for a crash to happen at that hour in such an area was “very unusual.”
A team of government investigators from the Australian Transport Safety Bureau were also dispatched to the scene.
Cairns: Beach resort near Great Barrier Reef
Cairns is a popular tourist city on the northeastern coast and a gateway to Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.
