A U.S. Marine helicopter supporting earthquake relief in Nepal was declared missing Tuesday with eight people on board, a military spokesman said.
The UH-1Y Huey with two Nepalese soldiers and six U.S. Marines on board disappeared over Charikot, Nepal, at about 10 p.m. local time (12:15 p.m. ET), said U.S. Pacific Command spokesman Army Maj. Dave Eastburn.
Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren said the U.S. military is hopeful that the missing helicopter landed and is out of communication. A military official told NBC News there is “no indication that there was a crash” but “it is dark,” so they could not immediately confirm that.
Eastburn said military personnel in Nepal were “responding to the emergency” and the incident was under investigation.
Charikot was one of the villages hardest hit by a 7.3-magnitude quake on Tuesday.
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(via NBC News)
