NAIROBI, April 18 (Xinhua) -- A military helicopter crashed in northwestern Kenya on Thursday, resulting in the deaths of at least eight senior officers, a security source has confirmed.
The Huey helicopter of the Kenya Defence Forces took off from a local primary school in Elgeyo Marakwet County before going down and bursting into flames.
The military officials onboard the helicopter had been at the school for its opening, which had been refurbished by the military. President William Ruto has called for an urgent meeting of the National Security Council at the State House, Nairobi, in response to the accident.
The cause of the crash has not yet been determined. Witnesses reported that the KDF chopper, which was allegedly carrying Chief of Defence Forces Francis Ogolla, crashed and caught fire about two kilometers away from where it took off, along the Elgeyo Marakwet-West Pokot border.
"We saw the chopper come down and when we rushed to the scene we found the chopper up in flames," said Evans Kipkosgei, a resident. He noted that the area was immediately secured by KDF officers from Kerio Valley.
"A number of burnt bodies were removed from the wreckage," Kipkosgei added.
KDF has not yet issued an official report regarding the tragic crash. ■
