Tragedy struck Colombia early Sunday morning when a military helicopter carrying eight soldiers crashed near the border with Venezuela. The soldiers were on a humanitarian mission in the eastern department of Vichada, according to President Gustavo Petro. The Colombian Air Force confirmed that the wreckage of the helicopter was located after a search in a rural area in the municipality of Cumaribo, and that there were no survivors. Images shared by Colombian media showed the charred remains of the aircraft in a grassy field.
The Air Force is providing support to the families of the crew while a recovery mission is underway. Sadly, this is not the first military aircraft crash in Colombia this year. In April, nine soldiers lost their lives when their helicopter crashed in the country’s north. Furthermore, in February, four soldiers died when a Black Hawk helicopter went down en route to an air base on the border with Panama. Adding to the string of tragedies, five police officers also perished in February when their helicopter crashed in northwestern Antioquia department.
While armed groups are engaged in a struggle for territory and power in various parts of Colombia, they have not been blamed for any of these crashes. Some analysts point to the possibility of deteriorating military equipment as a potential contributing factor to the recent string of accidents.
