Three French rescuers were killed after a search and rescue helicopter went off the radar in the early morning of Monday and crashed in the flood-affected southern French department of Bouches-du-Rhone, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.
"In the evening of 1 December, as the EC145 Civil Security helicopter was heading to Le Luc-et-le-Cannet (Var) for a search and rescue operation, the radio and radars went off. Despite significant search efforts [on land and in the air], the three crew of the helicopter were found dead at 1:30 a.m. [00:30 GMT] near the town of Rove (Bouches-du-Rhone)," the statement read.
The ministry added that an investigation would determine the exact circumstances of the accident.