1 dead, 3 injured after helicopters crash in midair near Mount Everest

A midair collision between two helicopters near Mount Everest on Tuesday left one person dead and three others injured, authorities said.

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Officials with Nepal’s civil aviation authority said a tourist from India was killed, The New York Times reported. Both pilots and a visitor from New Zealand were injured, according to the newspaper.

The helicopters were attempting to land just below the base camp of the world’s tallest mountain, CBS News reported.

There are no roads on Everest, and helicopters are the only way to bring down climbers and guides who become sick or exhausted in Mount Everest’s cold, high altitude.

The helicopters crashed at Pheriche village, which is at an altitude of 13,780 feet, according to the news outlet.

Video from the accident showed that in weather that appeared to be clear, the propellers of one helicopter made contact with the second aircraft above it, the Times reported.

Both helicopters crashed to the ground near one another and appeared to have been destroyed, according to the newspaper.

The Nepali authorities identified the dead tourist as Vasanth Kumar Balaramaramadu, 44, of India, the Times reported. The injured visitor from New Zealand was identified as Shailesh Kisan Patel, according to the newspaper.

The Mount Everest base camp trek lasts up to two weeks and originates from the only airstrip in the area, CBS News reported.

In a post, the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu expressed “its deepest condolences on the unfortunate demise of an Indian national” and said it was working “in close coordination with Nepali authorities for early repatriation of the mortal remains of the deceased.”

Authorities in Nepal said an investigation was ongoing.