President Bola Tinubu has extended his heartfelt condolences to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Board, its staff, and the families affected by the recent helicopter crash off the coast of Bonny Finima in Port-Harcourt.
He directed military officers involved in various operations in Port Harcourt, Rivers state, to join the search for passengers of the helicopter that crashed into the Atlantic Ocean.
Tinubu asked the military officers to provide the necessary support needed by the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, and other relevant agencies.
On Thursday, the ministry of aviation and aerospace development said three persons died in the helicopter crash.
The ministry said while no emergency locator transmitter (ELT) signal was received, manual efforts to plot the location of the accident are underway, and all available resources, including the military and low-flying aircraft, have been deployed to assist in locating and rescuing any survivor.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited In a statement addressing the crash, said the helicopter, operated by East Winds Aviation, was hired by the national oil company.
NNPC said the helicopter, which had eight persons on board, six passengers and two crew members were heading to its floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) facility from the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) base in Port Harcourt.
Bayo Onanuga, the president’s special adviser on information and strategy, said Tinubu also commiserated with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and the families of the helicopter crash victims.
Written by Jennifer Amarachi
