It is very sad to learn about missing helicopter and 24 people on board on the mission of WWF. Some of them are well known to me. Let's prey for their safe return home!



Helicopter with 24 passengers including Minister Rai, WWF officials missing

By DHARMA POUDEL
(Kantipuronline.com)

TAPLEJUNG, Sept 23 - A Shree Airlines helicopter bound for Suketar from Ghunsa, Taplejung, with 24 passengers on board, went missing since Saturday morning.

Chief District Officer of Taplejung district, Hem Nath Dawadi said that the 9AN helicopter had gone out of contact this morning at around 9 while returning to Suketar from Ghunsa.

According to Dawadi, State Minister for Forest, Gopal Rai, some media persons are among those who were onboard on the missing chopper.

Minister Rai and media persons including officials from the World Wild Life Fund (WWF) had reached Taplejung to attend a function to mark the handing over of the Kanchanjunga Conservation Area to the local community.

Others on board include: Pauli Mustonen, Charge d'affaires at the Embassy of Finland, Dr. Harka Gurung, Mohan Prasad Wagle of Forest Ministry, Dr. Bijanan Acharya of USAID, Dr Jill Bowling, conservation director of WWF-UK, Dr Tirtha Man Maskey, vice-president of Asian Rhino Conservation Department, Dr. Chandra Prasad Gurung of WWF-Nepal, Dr Damodar Prasad Parajuli, acting secretary at the Ministry of Forest, Sharad Rai, director general of Department of Forest, Narayan Poudel, director general of Department of National Park and Wildlife Conservation, Margaret Alexander of USAID, Mingma Nurbu Sherpa of WWF-US, Jennifer Headley, WWF UK Coordinator, Eastern Himalayas, Hem Raj Bhandari and Sunil Singh of Nepal Television, AC Lama, senior programme officer of WWF Nepal, Matthew Preece, Bijay Kumar Shrestha of FNCCI, Dawa Tsering Sherpa of Kanchanjungha Conservation Area, and four crew members that include Captain Klim Kim, Saffron Vallery, Tandu Shrestha, pilot Migma Tsering Sherpa.

Two helicopters of the Nepal Army have been dispatched to carry out the search operation, officials at the Rescue Coordination at TIA said.

However, due to the "deteriorating" weather condition in the areas, rescue operation have been affected, the officials added.

Local Sherpas from Ghunsa told the authorities at Taplejung that the helicopter had taken off at 11: 30 this morning and soon after which they heard a loud noise.

San, if anyone complains about me posting photos showing faces of anonymous people please let me know.

well a preety sad news...

well I hope none is dead.. I pray to buddha for their survival............

Indeed it's sad that the chopper's gone missing!

It would be almost impossible to imagine a more remarkable group of conservationists and Himalayan scholars - especially in the context of Nepal - than those on this flight.

Let us hope that the the weather improves in eastern Nepal to aid the ongoing search and that all aboard willl soon be found safe and sound. Eastern Nepal is a tough terrain; I am aware that it will take a miracle for this hope to come true.

The ill fated helicopter has been found, but waiting for details.... (nepalnews.com)

हेलिकोप्टर दुर्घट्नाग्रस्त अवस्थामा
राज्यमन्त्री सहित सबै यात्रुको मृत्यु

सोमबार, २५ सेप्टेम्बर २००६ १४:२३


दुईदिन देखि हराई रहेको वन राज्यमन्त्री गोपाल राई सहित २४ जना सवार हेलिकोप्टर ९ असोजमा दुर्घट्नाग्रस्त अवस्थामा ताप्लेजुङमा फेला परेको छ। ७ असोजको विहान करिव ११ बजे ताप्लेजुङको लेलेप गाविसको वडा नं.९ घुन्साबाट उडेको करिव ५ मिनेट पछि नै सम्पर्कविहिन भएको थियो।


Details - http://www.himalkhabar.com/front/morenews.php?id=1561

Indeed very big loss for Nepal in term of conservationist and wildlife expert. May their soul rest in peace.

Sym

A very big loss for Nepal and World. May their soul rest in peace.

From Nepal 1's Field Report (Live telephone report by Anand Gautam):

- Found crash site
- All people on board dead.
- The problem now is how to ferry the dead bodies
- It is hard identify the bodies


IT IS INDEED VERY HARD TO EXPRESS THE LOSS OF INVALUABLE LIVES.

I PRAY GOD FOR THE PEACE OF DEPARTED SOULS.

Its a very very sad news. An irrepairable loss.

God bless the departed souls.

What a tragic moment on the auspicious occasion of Dashain.

May the soul of all passengers rest in peace....

Very Sad News...!!!

Margaret Alexander, the deputy dir. of USAID in Nepal, had many friends in the U.S. and, indeed, all over the world. We are devastated.

This is a tragedy that hits very close to my heart. One of the dead was a dear and old family friend of ours - Minga dai. You could not find a more gentle human being in the world. A great loss to Nepal and even greater loss to Humanity!

LP

A big loss for the Country.......People like Hark Gurung and Tirtha Maskey were country's pride. Very sad to hear this news.
Visibility nahuda nahudai kin udaunu paryo,I dont understand??

Very Tragic News..
May all the departed soul lost in this tragic accident rest in peace.

Besides personal speculation and assumptions, has anyone come across any reports in the media that provides information about the weather condition *at the time of take-off* ?

I have seen in nepal, the pilot of private airlines usually take risk even in bad weather....

this is very sad news...

Great loss to the conservation community not only in Nepal but also in the world. I personally knew at least 8 individuals. Like many others, I am devastated.

May your soul rest in everlasting peace

A single death is an enormous tragedy, but a unit of this rank and reputation succumbing to such misfortune must not have a word in the Lexicon. Environmental science, in which many of these people dedicated their lives to, is a science of passion and altruism. We owe them for supplementing their work of hobby, by means of education, talent and dedication. It is the ultimate irony of faith, that, these individuals who spent most of their lives preserving the lives of the living and that of inanimate, departed as “one of the 24 dead.” They certainly deserved better. May our gratitude and respect ease their soul rest in peace.

It is sad indeed! At least they have found the crash site. Actually the area is very rugged terrain with very steep steep slopes. Surprisingly unlike in other parts of Nepal even the steep slopes retain a lot of moisture and as a result good growth of vegetation (nigalo, white rhododendrons at high altitudes and red rododendrones at lower slopes. Perhaps, this is the region of Nepal where the precipitation amounts to be the highest. This region has the most densely preserved Rain forest of whole Nepal. Villages are not easy to locate and are found at great distances on higher places connected by few the main trails. Valley bottom are not usually accessible. If you are off the trail then it is easy to get lost. If you are lost then you may die of starvation. This is exactly what happened to my group (four of us). After struggling along the steep slopes just like monkey to find the right trail almost for whole day until we came across this (see in the picture) what appears to be “go-tha-lo ko bato” . There were no crisscross trails like in other places. We were so tired and hungry and we were lucky to find this trail. This trail took us to the main trail and we survived. I have posted this picture just to give you an idea about the area.

may their soul rest in peace