A pilot has died after a helicopter crashed into the roof of a hotel in Queensland’s far north.
Emergency services were called to the Double Tree Hotel in Cairns shortly before 2am last night.
The pilot, who was the only person on board the helicopter, was declared deceased at the scene, Queensland Police said in a statement.
What we know about the crash so far
Addressing the media on Monday, Queensland Police acting assistant commissioner Shane Holmes said the aircraft was moved from a hangar early in the morning and the flight was unauthorised.
Nautilus Aviation, the aviation company the helicopter belonged to, had earlier also said it had been taken on an “unauthorised flight”.
Holmes said police were still trying to confirm the identity of the person flying the helicopter and that it was unclear whether they had a pilot’s license.
Chief commissioner of the Australian Transport Safety Bureau Angus Mitchell said investigators from Brisbane and Canberra are working in Cairns to understand what happened to the helicopter from the time of takeoff to its collision with the hotel.
The crash triggered the declaration of a Public Safety Preservation Act (PSPA), which has an exclusion zone encompassing the city’s Esplanade and Minnie, Aplin and Grafton streets.
Members of the public have been warned to avoid the area.
Police have declared a Public Safety Preservation Act in Cairns, and members of the public have been warned to avoid the area around the Double Tree Hotel. Source: AAP / Brian Cassey
Emergency declaration on Monday
Queensland Ambulance senior operations supervisor in Cairns Caitlin Denning said between 300 and 400 people were being evacuated from the hotel as emergency crews arrived.
“At the time, it was too unsafe for us to enter the hotel to view the (impact site),” she told reporters.
“The helicopter impacted the roof of the hotel, however two propellers have dislodged.
“One landed on the Cairns Esplanade and there was a second propeller located in the hotel pool on the bottom floor and it was on fire.”
Two hotel guests, a man in his 80s and a woman in her 70s, were taken to Cairns Hospital in a stable condition.
Denning said the noise generated by the impact was frightening.
“There were reports of it sounding like a bomb, and seeing the fire and smoke, a lot of the occupants of the hotel were unsure of the situation.
“There is a lot of unease here.”
Holmes called for anybody who was on the Cairns foreshore in the early hours of the morning that may have witnessed the incident to contact Crime Stoppers or local police.
