Indonesian Army firefighting helicopter crashes into river while scooping water; three soldiers killed, five survive

An Indonesian Army Mi-17V5 helicopter crashed into a river in Seruyan Regency, Central Kalimantan, on Wednesday, November 4, while collecting water to fight forest fires, killing three of the eight soldiers aboard and leaving five survivors. The three fallen soldiers had spent nearly two months fighting fires in Kalimantan. Indonesia's disaster agency said it was the first of two water-bombing helicopter crashes in the country in five days; on November 8 a second firefighting helicopter crashed into the Barito River in South Kalimantan, leaving one crew member missing. (Photo: file photo of a military helicopter scooping water with a bucket.)

Crash while collecting water; three dead, five injured

The helicopter belonged to the Army Aviation Centre (Puspenerbad). It took off from Kuala Pembuang at 9:55 a.m. to support firefighting operations near Tanjung Puting National Park, and crashed at about 11:18 a.m. while collecting water in the waters off Sungai Perlu village, Danau Sembuluh district. Of the eight soldiers aboard, Lieutenant Colonel Dudi Firmansyah, Captain Nurhafiz Akbar Rizki Hartio, 34, and First Sergeant Heri Prasetyo were killed; the other five survived and were taken to an Army hospital in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, where their condition is gradually improving and stable.

Fallen soldiers had fought fires for nearly two months, flying 636 sorties

Army Chief of Staff General Tandyo Budi Revita said the three soldiers had been in Kalimantan for almost two months on the firefighting mission, completing 636 sorties and dropping about 1.2 million litres of water. He said he hoped the helicopter's black box could be recovered promptly to help establish the cause of the crash. The bodies of two of the fallen officers were flown to Semarang, Central Java, on November 5 for burial.

President pledges support for families; Australia sends aircraft to help

President Prabowo Subianto has directed the government to support the bereaved families, including the soldiers' children; State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi conveyed the government's condolences on November 6. Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni, who visited the five injured soldiers the same day, said he had reported the incident to the president. National Disaster Mitigation Agency chief Kristomei Sianturi also expressed condolences and urged the public not to burn forests or land. Australia's New South Wales Rural Fire Service has dispatched a C-130 transport aircraft and a Citation jet to help fight Indonesia's fires, operating from November 6 to 12.

(Sources: Indonesia's National Disaster Mitigation Agency; Reuters; Indonesian Army statements.)