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No Survivors After Rescue Helicopter Crash in Japan – Reports

TOKYO (Sputnik) - The crew of a rescue helicopter that crashed Friday in mountains in central Japan have been confirmed dead, local authorities said.
Sputnik

The copter came down an hour after takeoff while on a mission to monitor a route in the mountains that had been opened for climbers.

Rescue Helicopter Crashes in Japan, Two Passengers Dead - Reports
The Kyodo News Agency reported, citing local officials, that the helicopter left the Gunma prefecture at around 09:15 a.m. local time (0:15 GMT) to examine the route on the borders of the nearby Nagano and Niigata prefectures and was supposed to return an hour and a half later.

The helicopter was found in the Gunma prefecture north of Tokyo. The Defense Ministry said eight people had been found near the wreckage, one was missing.

READ MORE: Helicopter Crash Near S Korean City of Pohang Leaves 5 Dead, 1 Injured

On Saturday, authorities said they had discovered the ninth person, according to the Kyodo news agency. Doctors who examined the bodies said there were no survivors.

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