Crews in Turkey search for helicopter that crashed into lake while fighting forest fire

Underwater teams are searching a lake for a helicopter that crashed over the weekend while fighting a forest fire in western Turkey, state media reported Monday.

Four crew members were aboard the firefighting aircraft when it fell into the waters of the Tahtali dam while battling a blaze in Izmir’s Menderes district.

One pilot, a national of Kyrgyzstan, swam to safety following the accident late Saturday. Three other crew – a Turk and two Kyrgyz personnel – remain unaccounted for.

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Smoke rises from a forest fire in the Menderes district of Izmir, Turkey, on Sep. 17, 2023. Three passengers of a helicopter that crashed into a lake while fighting the forest fire remain missing. The pilot of the aircraft was able to swim to safety. (Lokman Ilhan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)