LATEST: One person has died in the helicopter accident on Wednesday evening, the police say. At 06.30 on Thursday morning, communications manager Arne Lutro informs the police that a search has been made for wreckage throughout the night. Lutro, on the other hand, cannot say anything about the state of health of the five people admitted to Haukeland hospital, or how they are doing. At 11.30pm on Wednesday, Haukeland University Hospital notified the police of the status of the six people who were retrieved from the water after the dramatic accident west of Sotra in Vestland: One person has been confirmed dead. The next of kin have been notified. One person is slightly injured. Four people have varying degrees of damage. The police state that, in collaboration with Equinor, they have set up a next of kin center at Scandic Kokstad. The police will be there. Relatives can contact the relative number 990 97 989. The accident is now being investigated by the police. It happened around six kilometers west of Algrøyna in Øygarden municipality. The Norwegian Defense Forces have been asked to assist in searching for and receiving wreckage at Haakonsvern. It was this helicopter that crashed into the sea outside Bergen. Photo: JetPhotos, OpenStreetMap, ADSB-Exchange – Deeply tragic – This is a deeply tragic event. Today is a hard day for many. Our thoughts go out to the families, loved ones and others who are affected, says Anders Opedal, CEO of Equinor. The helicopter was on an exercise for Equinor when the accident happened. Equinor writes in a press release that they are working closely with the helicopter operator Bristow Norway and relevant authorities in the handling and follow-up of the incident. The company has until further notice stopped its flights on the Norwegian continental shelf out of consideration for those affected and to gain an overview of the situation. An emergency signal was sent out. The helicopter goes by the name NORSAR6 and is of the type Sikorsky S-92. It belongs to the company Bristow, which is one of the largest companies that flies crew to and from the oil platforms in the North Sea. The helicopter is normally stationed at Flesland. A so-called search and rescue helicopter. – Our focus now is to take care of everyone involved, and we will come back with more information, says managing director Heidi Wulff Heimark in Bristow Norway to NTB. Operations manager in the West police district tells about the sequence of events. – Like all aircraft, the helicopter has an emergency bearing transmitter on board. So it went off when it ended up in the water, and that emergency signal came into the main rescue centre, said rescue manager Ståle Jamtli on Wednesday evening. Two air ambulances and a rescue helicopter from the Swedish Armed Forces, SAR Queen, rushed to the scene and began the rescue operation. The people were in the sea for up to 50 minutes before they were rescued by helicopter. Emergency services on site in Møvik to receive the people from the helicopter. Photo: Tony Roald Ågotnes / news The Accident Investigation Board has been notified of the accident, and will start its work during the day. – We are notified of the incident, and then we staff up as we receive information and treat this as a case we have to work on, says director William J. Bertheussen of the Accident Investigation Board. This is what the city looks like. Here, the helicopter lost radar contact at 19.38, according to Flightradar24. Mayor: – A great tragedy – It is of course a great tragedy that a person has died, says Mayor Tom Georg Indrevik in Øygarden to news on Thursday morning. He encourages people to talk together or ask to talk to someone if they need it. The municipality set up a crisis team on Wednesday evening. They have a psychosocial team on standby and ask people to contact the Øygarden emergency department if necessary. – We live off the oil installations and have many people who know and work there. There are probably many who are worried now. – It is clear that this type of message is disturbing and a shock, says Tom Georg Indrevik. Photo: Tony Roald Ågotnes / news The municipality will have a meeting on Thursday morning to consider several measures. He says they don’t know if the pilot and passengers are local or not. Indrevik was deputy mayor eight years ago, when a helicopter crashed near Turøy and 13 people died. – It probably brings back memories for me too. I wouldn’t wish that feeling on anyone. My thoughts go out to all those who are now unsure. Equinor has created a number for relatives, and asks those affected to contact 80 050 020.
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One person died in the helicopter accident outside Sotra – news Vestland
