The fourth crew member of the New Zealand Air Force died this morning after their Iroquois helicopter crashed near Paekakariki Hill Rd around 6am.The crew were travelling from Ohakea and heading towards the Anzac Day commemorations in Wellington.Three crew members died instantly while the fourth was airlifted from the crash site with serious injuries and taken to Wellington Hospital. The Defence Force will hold a news at Ohakea at 2pm.
Hi Jax. Some good news. The fourth crew member has not died and is in a serious but stable condition in Wellington Hospital. Great blog :) Kev
ReplyDeleteSaw an advertisement for www.stuff.co.nz - has a journalist forced into a bunji jump, hanging only by his jocks...headline was: "We take it seriously when out staff don't get the News first." Wonder if they wedgie-bunji those who are so quick, they negate the absolute critical details like.. gee...let me think, someone dying or not as the case may be? My apologies...on behalf of www.stuffedup.co.nz!
ReplyDeleteDefence Minister Wayne Mapp will apologise directly to the upset family of injured airman Stevin Creeggan for broadcasting that he had died.
ReplyDeleteBut he is not bearing embarrassment for the error alone – last night he outed the Vice-Chief of the Defence Force, Rear Admiral Jack Steer, and Police Commissioner Howard Broad as the sources of the information.
Mr Creeggan's brother Mark lashed out at Dr Mapp in a Facebook posting for causing unnecessary worry to his family by announcing all four crew members of an Iroquois helicopter that crashed near Pukerua Bay had died, when Sergeant Creeggan had survived.
In his message on Sunday, Mark Creeggan said: "Us family members find it hard enough to deal with when all we knew was there was a crash ... I hope they make you formally apologise to the [families] you put [through] hell over the last few hour[s]."
Dr Mapp said on Sunday that he believed the information because it came from an "impeccable" source.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/3629917/Survivors-family-to-get-apology