Eight die on rescue helicopter

A RESCUE helicopter has crashed while on a mission to evacuate residents near a volcano on Indonesia’s main island, killing eight people.

The helicopter crashed about three minutes before arriving at Dieng Plateau, where an eruption on Sunday injured at least 10 people.

The aircraft reportedly hit Butak Mountain in Central Java province.

The victims’ bodies had been taken to Bhayangkara Hospital in Semarang, said Major General Heronimus Guru, deputy operations chief of the National Search and Rescue Agency.

Brigadier General Ivan Tito, director of operation and training at the search agency, said the victims were four navy officers and four rescuers.

The Sileri Crater at Dieng Plateau spewed cold lava, mud and ash when it erupted on Sunday, said National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho.

There were about 17 visitors around the crater at the time.

The crater appeared to be quieter yesterday, and all visitors have been evacuated.

Sileri is the most active and dangerous among some 10 craters at Dieng Plateau.

Its most recent eruption was in 2009, when it unleashed volcanic materials up to 200m high and triggered the creation of three new craters.