Helicopter crashes into Turkey hospital moments after take-off, 4 killed | Watch

Turkey Helicopter crash: An ambulance helicopter rammed into a Turkey hospital on Sunday. In the incident, reported from southwestern region of the country, four people died.

Preliminary investigation revealed that two pilots, a doctor and an employee on board the aircraft lost their lives. The provincial governor alleged that thick fog conditions, which reduced visibility, was responsible for the accident.

“The helicopter fell to the ground after having struck the fourth storey of a hospital during take-off,” AFP quoted Mugla provincial governor Idris Akbiyik as saying. Idris Akbiyik noted that the authorities were investigating the accident’s cause and added, “There was intense fog.”

The helicopter took off from the roof of the city’s hospital in Mugla’s amid poor visibility, as confirmed by the images provided by Local news outlet NTV television channel reported. The aircraft was reportedly heading to Antalya.

Soon after take-off, the chopper drifted in the fog several minutes until finally smashing into an empty field next to the hospital it struck. This accident comes few days after the recent helicopter collision during an army training exercise. The incident took place in Turkey’s southwestern Isparta province in which six soldiers died.

Expressing condolences to the families of the deceased, Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in a post on X stated, “The news that 4 of our brothers lost their lives as a result of the crash of an ambulance helicopter affiliated with our Ministry of Health in Muğla broke our hearts.”

He added, “I pray to God to have mercy on our deceased personnel and offer my condolences to their families, colleagues and our entire healthcare community.”

Turkey’s former Health Minister also expressed concern over the incident as he said that the ambulance helicopter operating under Ministry of Health crashed into a Training and Research Hospital during take-off.