Australia had a helicopter crash that killed four people over Gold Coast.
Four people have died after two helicopters crashed into each other in the air near Sea World on the Gold Coast of Australia.
Initial investigations by Queensland Police show that the crash happened when one plane was taking off and the other was landing.
All of the people who died were in the same helicopter. Three other people on the plane are in very bad shape.
A foreign office spokesman told the BBC that two people from the UK were among those who died in the crash.
They also said that officials were helping the families of the two victims, whose names have not been released, and that they would “stay in touch with the local authorities.”
Five of the six people on the other plane, which had to make an emergency landing, were hurt only a little bit.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that the “terrible and tragic event” had left the whole country in shock.
He said, “My thoughts are with everyone who was hurt, including the first responders, and my deepest condolences are with those who are grieving.”
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) is looking into the crash, which happened around 14:00 local time (04:00 GMT).
About 75 km (47 miles) south of Brisbane, the two planes crashed near a tourist area called Main Beach.
Gary Worrell of the Queensland Police Service said, “It’s a hard scene. Because it’s on a sand bank, it was hard to get our emergency services to the scene so they could handle it properly.”
Images from the scene show wreckage all over the area and what looks like a broken-up helicopter lying upside down across from the Sea World resort.
The other helicopter has the logo of a popular marine park on its fuselage, and it looks like it had to land quickly after the crash.
Mr. Worrell said that people from the public and the police had tried to get people out of the plane and given first aid to those who were hurt.
The Sea World website says that the park offers helicopter rides for tourists to see the sights and does other charter work.
Village Roadshow Theme Parks, which owns the resort, sent condolences to everyone who was hurt and said that Sea World Helicopters is a separate company.
Angus Mitchell, the head of the ATSB, asked people who saw the crash or the helicopters flying to get in touch with investigators.
In the next six to eight weeks, a preliminary report will be made public. Once the investigation is done, a final report will be made public.
Annastacia Palaszczuk, the Premier of Queensland, called it a “unthinkable tragedy” and said, “My deepest sympathies go out to each family and everyone affected by this terrible accident.”
Right now, when kids are on summer break, the Gold Coast is at its busiest for tourists.
