Search and rescue forces have recovered the remains of the helicopter that crashed near Ha Long Bay Wednesday evening, including a body.
Part of the helicopter's engine.
A seat from the downed aircraft.
Another passenger seat, with safety belts buckled.
At 7:18 p.m. Wednesday, search and rescue personnel found two bodies, along with several fragments of the helicopter in waters about 3 km away from Gia Luan Commune in Hai Phong's Cat Hai District.
At 11 p.m., the body of pilot Chu Quang Minh, 59, was recovered in waters bordering Quang Ninh Province and Hai Phong City. The corpse was brought back to Tuan Chau Island.
Search and rescue efforts continued through the night. The helicopter carrying four passengers over Ha Long Bay lost its signal 10 minutes after taking off from Tuan Chau Island Wednesday afternoon.
The office of the National Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Response, Search and Rescue deployed military forces to find the victims.
The SAR-411, Vietnam's largest search and rescue vessel, was deployed by the Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center to participate in the operation.
Around 300 specialists from multiple units were dispatched to find the victims through the night. Nine divers were present at the scene.
Several smaller vessels were also present to recover fragments of the helicopter.
Two teams of divers from naval forces recovered victims of the crash. At 9:30 a.m. Thursday, the body of a tourist was found inside the remains of the helicopter.
Nguyen Trong Binh, deputy chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army (3rd, L), directs search and rescue efforts.
The National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting said weather conditions were ideal for search and rescue. However, a cold front would begin to impact the Gulf of Tonkin soon, causing strong winds and rough seas.
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