No fewer than six oil workers and two crew members are feared k!lled in a helicopter crash in Akwa Ibom State.
The victims were working at OML 123 oil field when the helicopter ditched and nosedived into the Atlantic Ocean.
They were said to have been working at Mimbo platform and the Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel around 11:40am before the incident occurred.
A source, who hinted about the development, said that all the victims onboard were feared k!lled.
“There were six personnel and two crew members onboard the helicopter. Three bodies have been recovered so far. Search and rescue is ongoing.
“The helicopter belongs to Eastwind Aviation,” the source stated.
In another report, the aircraft is said to be owned by East Wing Aviation. It the registration number 5NBQG and crashed near Bonny Island, Rivers State. The helicopter, which took off from the Port Harcourt Military Base, was en route to an oil facility in Bonny Finnima when it plunged into the Ocean around 11:22 a.m.
Of the eight victims, three bodies have been recovered, while five remain missing. Authorities, including the Nigeria Safety Investigations Board (NSIB) and the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, are investigating the cause of the crash.
Sources from the Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) suggest bad weather in Port Harcourt may have contributed to the accident.