Helicopter crash kills provincial governor, 4 others in Philippines

Philippine chopper crash kills governor, 4 others

MANILA, Philippines — A helicopter carrying a provincial governor and his entourage crashed into houses south of the Philippine capital on Monday, killing all four people aboard and a girl on the ground, officials said.

The helicopter carrying Quezon Gov. Rafael Nantes, two security personnel and the pilot crashed shortly after takeoff in Lucena city, about 70 miles (110 kilometers) southeast of Manila, said provincial police Chief Ericson Velasquez.

Velasquez corrected an earlier count of fatalities, saying only one — a 14-year-old girl — was killed on the ground. A firefighter initially reported finding two other bodies inside one of the burning houses but they turned out to be injured, Velasquez said.

“The chopper was totally crushed and burned, while the bodies we retrieved were almost totally burned beyond recognition,” Velasquez said.

He said witnesses told police the helicopter took off nicely then started to swerve and its rotor suddenly stopped.

The cause was not immediately clear.

Lucena city police Chief Pascual Munoz said the fire at the crash site razed 10 houses before it was put out.

Nantes’ term as Quezon governor was supposed to end June 30, after he lost a May 10 re-election bid. He was an ally of Sen. Benigno Aquino III, the apparent winner of the presidential election.

(This version corrects time element in graf 1)