All four passengers were killed, the police said on Friday. The site is difficult to reach on foot – it is located in the middle of a closed vegetation of the rainforest. A video released by police shows officers rappelling down from a helicopter to examine the wreckage.
The area is covered with countless trees – mainly eucalyptus – that are between 80 and 100 meters high, as reported by the Brazilian news portal “G1”. The helicopter left the capital São Paulo on the last day of last year with the pilot and three other passengers on board. They wanted to spend New Year’s Eve in Ilhabela, an island on the northern coast of the state. However, the helicopter did not arrive at the destination, which triggered a major search operation.
Bad weather and lack of visibility
According to audio recordings between the pilot and the owner of the helipad, the pilot complained regarding the lack of visibility due to bad weather, Brazilian newspaper Folha de São Paulo reported. In a last message to her boyfriend, a passenger also sent a video in which thick fog can be seen around the aircraft.
