Chopper Down in Blue Mountains
Six hurt in Blue Mountains chopper crash
From: AAP October 10, 2010 1:08PM
A helicopter has crashed in the Blue Mountains in NSW / AAP
Helicopter ditches in Blue Mountains
Six on board injured, taken to hospital
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SIX men who survived a helicopter crash in the NSW Blue Mountains are in a stable condition and receiving hospital treatment.
The aircraft ditched in bushland southwest of Woodford about 9am (AEDT) this morning, coming to rest near the Oaks Fire Trail.
Despite the nature of the incident the pilot and five passengers escaped relatively unscathed.
Two passengers, both in their 30s, suffered head injuries and were airlifted to Westmead Hospital.
An Ambulance Service of NSW statement said both men were stable and their injuries not serious.
The pilot, in his 40s, suffered an elbow injury.
Two passengers in their 20s suffered cuts and bruises while a sixth man, aged 39, suffered minor injuries. All four were taken to Nepean Hospital.
An investigation is now under way to establish how the chopper crashed.
Weather conditions on Sunday morning were said to consist of low cloud and light rain.
Fire brigade officers were working at the crash scene, which is said to be accessible only by air or by four-wheel drive vehicle, to remove fuel which spilled during the accident.
"We were expecting dead people"
Mountain biker Peter Hales has described how he and some fellow riders came across the crash site, on the Oaks Fire Trail.
"When we saw it and we worked out what had actually happened, we were expecting dead people,'' he told the smh.com.au.
"The tail was still hanging up in a tree, that had broken off completely.
"The cabin was basically upside down, the doors were smashed up ... it was just so surreal, we certainly didn't expect to see that.
"It took a while to take in what was happening.''
He said all six male survivors were dressed in Jack Daniel's branded clothing and believed to be on their way to the Bathurst 1000 Supercar race when the chopper crashed.
A spokesman for the Jack Daniel's Racing team, competing at Bathurst, had no information about the crash.
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