Times Picayune report
Helicopter reported missing in Gulf, Coast Guard search underway
6/24/2004, 5:12 p.m. CT
INTRACOASTAL CITY, La. (AP)
— A helicopter with three people on board was reported missing about 25 miles south-southeast of here in Vermilion Bay, the U.S. Coast Guard said.
Another helicopter heard a mayday call sent out by the OMNI Aviation aircraft at about 1:50 p.m., according to Chad Saylor, a Coast Guard spokesman in New Orleans. The aircraft is owned by OMNI Energy Services Corp., a seismic surveying company based in Carencro.
"Rescue aircraft are focused on searching and seeing if we might be able to find any survivors, and checking the validity of the report because right now we're going off of a mayday call heard in the area," Saylor said.
The Coast Guard sent two Dolphin helicopters from its air station in New Orleans and a Falcon rescue jet from its Aviation Training Center in Mobile, Ala.
Saylor said OMNI confirmed that one of its helicopters was missing. An OMNI official declined to comment Thursday afternoon, saying he did not have enough information about the incident.
Saylor said there were reports of squalls and heavy rains in the area when the mayday call went out. There was no indication that bad weather was impeding the search effort, he said.
The Coast Guard said the helicopter left Eugene Island at about 12:58 p.m. en route to Abbeville and then changed course to Intracoastal City about 40 minutes later.
The helicopter was described as a white-and-red Bell 206L, the Coast Guard said.