Tri-Service

Bodies Found Near Wreckage Of US Helicopter In Nepal

Nepalese rescuers have found the wreckage of a US marine helicopter that disappeared earlier this week on a relief mission.

Three bodies were found nearby. The helicopter was carrying six US marines and two Nepalese soldiers, and officials said it was unlikely there were any survivors from the crash. Nepal's defence secretary Iswori Poudyal said:

"The wreckage of the helicopter was found in pieces and there is no chances of any survivors."

He gave no details about the nationalities of the three victims.

A separate team sent by the US marines said they had identified the wreckage as the missing UH-1 helicopter.

"The assessment of the site is ongoing and a thorough investigation will be conducted," a statement from the marine-led joint taskforce said.

The US relief mission was deployed soon after a magnitude-7.8 quake hit on April 25, killing more than 8,200 people. It was followed by another magnitude-7.3 quake on Tuesday that killed 117 people and injured 2,800.

The helicopter had been delivering rice and tarpaulins in Charikot, the area worst hit by Tuesday's quake. US military officials said earlier this week that an Indian helicopter in the air nearby heard radio chatter from the US aircraft about a possible fuel problem.