The chopper crashed in Katra Bus Stand. The helicopter belonged to a private tour operator – Himalayan Heli service. The helicopter was ferrying pilgrims to the holy Vaishno Devi shrine.
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Police personnel as well as the rescue teams reached the spot soon after the incident took place.
“It is too early to comment on the cause of crash but we can’t rule out technical snag as well”, Kumar said. The victims died in a helicopter crash are identified as Sumita Vijayan (pilot), Arjun Singh, Mahesh, Vandana, Akshita, Amrit Paul and Sachin.
A few unconfirmed reports came out which suggested that fire broke up in the chopper when it was in the mid-way.
The Aircraft Accident Investigating Bureau is probingthe accident and a two-member team has been sent to the accident site. Katra town is 50 Kms away from Jammu.
Thousands visit Vaishno Devi, one of the major pilgrim centres of India, every day. Many pilgrims go for the helicopter service to succeed in the cave shrine whereas others trek on foot.
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Police said that all deceased were from Jammu. The reason for the crash is under investigation.
