From Jessica BlackABC News
The DoubleTree by Hilton on the Cairns Esplanade (file image).
Photo: Delivered / Google Maps
Hundreds of people were evacuated after a helicopter crashed into the roof of a hotel in far north Queensland on Monday morning.
A Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) spokeswoman said police had declared a state of emergency around the DoubleTree by Hilton on the Cairns Esplanade and evacuated up to 400 people following the accident, which occurred just before 2am.
Two of the helicopter’s propellers came loose and landed on the esplanade and in the hotel pool.
Breaking news: At around 2 a.m., a helicopter crashed into the roof of a hotel in Cairns in the far north of Queensland, Australia. Rescue workers evacuated 400 people from the building. Police are urging the public to avoid the area. #Cairns #HelicopterCrash #NorthQueensland… pic.twitter.com/CU7352RFlJ
– Ghulam Abbas Shah (@ghulamabbasshah) 11 August 2024
The crash was described as a “bomb sound.”
“It’s pretty scary to hear that sound of a helicopter crashing,” said Caitlin Denning, QAS senior operations manager.
“There were reports that it sounded like a bomb and that many hotel guests were very unsettled by the situation given the smoke and fire emanating from it.
“There is great unrest in the evacuation center.”
Two people in the building were taken to Cairns Hospital in a stable condition.
It is not known how many people were on the helicopter and what condition they were in.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is sending an investigative team.
Hotel guests were evacuated to a nearby hotel.
– ABC
