Rui Silva Lampreia explained that the operation, which began at 08:00 and was carried out by seven members of the Maritime Police’s forensic diving group, is being conducted as part of the ongoing inquiry by the Office for the Prevention and Investigation of Aircraft Accidents and Railway Accidents (GPIAAF).
The operatives are searching for the “computer and tail rotor” of the forest firefighting helicopter that crashed into the Douro River on Friday, causing the death of five soldiers from the Emergency Protection and Rescue Unit (UEPC) who were returning from a fire in the municipality of Baião.
Regarding the 44-year-old pilot, a hospital source told Lusa today that he is recovering from his injuries and is expected to remain for a few more days in the orthopedic ward of Vila Real hospital.
In the Douro, today’s diving group operation is supported by two more vessels, one from the Douro and Leixões Port Administration (APDL) and another from the Maritime Police, with a total of at least four elements, according to Commander Silva Lampreia.
The purpose of these vessels is to “ensure the safety of the water surface,” he explained. “The passage of recreational vessels is not prohibited. It is controlled. They can pass one at a time and at a certain speed,” he observed.
On Saturday, the regional commander pointed out the need to locate “two important components of the helicopter, crucial for the investigation of air accidents, which are the tail rotor and a computer that serves as navigation for the device.”
The body of the fifth GNR soldier, victim of Friday’s accident in the Douro River in Lamego, was found at 16:10 on Saturday during underwater searches in the area where the helicopter crashed, a Civil Protection source told Lusa.
Of the five GNR soldiers on board, only one, aged 29, was left to be found, which happened this afternoon.
The soldiers who lost their lives in this accident were between 29 and 45 years old, three were from Lamego, one from Moimenta da Beira, and another from Castro Daire, in the district of Viseu.
The aircraft pilot was rescued alive.
The causes of the accident are not yet known.
The Office for the Prevention and Investigation of Aircraft Accidents and Railway Accidents (GPIAAF), a Portuguese State body, has a team on the ground and is investigating the accident.
The crashed helicopter, an AS350 – Écureuil model, is operated by HTA Helicópteros, based in Loulé, Algarve.
