A helicopter crashed into the sea off Victoria’s Bellarine Peninsula on Friday morning, seriously injuring all three people on board.
The aircraft came down shortly after 10am local time near Fellows Road, close to the Point Lonsdale Lighthouse, about 30 minutes southeast of Geelong. It landed in shallow waters roughly 30-50m from the shore.
All three individuals managed to make it to land, where passersby discovered them and alerted emergency services, police said in a statement.
Authorities said the survivors – two men and a woman, none of whom had yet been formally identified – were in serious condition.
“A yet to be formally identified male and female have been airlifted to hospital with serious injuries,” the Victoria police said. “A yet to be formally identified male has been taken by road to hospital with serious injuries.”
Ambulance Victoria confirmed the airlifted patients were transported to Royal Melbourne Hospital, while the third was taken to Geelong University Hospital.
Emergency crews were called to the scene at 10.11am after multiple reports of an aircraft crash near the surf club at Point Lonsdale. A total of 12 emergency vehicles responded, including from Victoria Police, Fire Rescue Victoria and Ambulance Victoria.
Firefighters arrived within minutes and worked with Surf Life Saving teams and paramedics to assist the injured. Wreckage from the helicopter was visible floating in the water.
The cause of the crash remained unclear. “The exact circumstances surrounding the incident are yet to be determined at this stage,” a spokesperson for the Victoria police said.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau said they had launched an investigation into the crash and would work with police to establish what led to the accident.
