Police helicopter crashes into Glasgow pub roof (1 Viewer)

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Anyone heard from Yabaw or Heads lately?


LONDON (AP) — Scottish authorities have confirmed that a police helicopter crashed Friday night through the roof of a popular pub in Glasgow. The Clutha pub is in the city's center.

Scotland's leader has warned that fatalities are likely.

Images on local television showed what appeared to be the helicopter's propeller sticking out of the pub's roof. Rescue workers swarmed the scene. Police officials say the helicopter had a crew of three — two police officers and a civilian pilot. It went down about 10:25 p.m. local time.

There were reports that people may have been trapped inside. Witnesses say there was live musical performance when the helicopter began to fall through the ceiling. Then there was a chaotic rush through a cloud of dust to get out. Survivors had gashes to the head and other injuries.

A newspaper editor says the aircraft fell like a stone.
http://www.necn.com/11/29/13/Police...n.html?&apID=5c5bf087469c4fd385157e40722b96b6
 

wino

DILLIGAF
shit thats enough to knock the head off ya beer, and 20 other people in the room

I hope none of 'our' mates were there Draugur
 
shit thats enough to knock the head off ya beer, and 20 other people in the room

I hope none of 'our' mates were there Draugur

Agreed. But if some mod would be willing to move this to FLH, I'd be willing to *talk shit about Heads

edit * if she's not currently drunk and buried under rubble, that is.
 
131129-glasgow-crash-jsw-852p.jpg
back on topic:


'Numerous' Casualties in Glasgow Pub Copter Crash
LONDON November 30, 2013 (AP)

A police helicopter crashed into the roof of a crowded Glasgow pub, causing "numerous" casualties and leaving people trapped in the unstable building, officials said early Saturday.

Authorities said they had made contact with people still inside The Clutha pub in the city center. They said some people had been taken to hospitals but that it was too soon to give a number of injured. Witnesses spoke of people streaming out of the building covered in blood, with gashes and other injuries.

"Given an incident of this scale we must all prepare ourselves for the likelihood of fatalities," Scotland's leader, Alex Salmond, said on his official Twitter account.

Television images showed what appeared to be the helicopter's propeller sticking out of the popular one-story pub's roof.

The crash Friday at around 10:30 p.m. local time sent dozens of patrons fleeing through a cloud of dust.
It was unclear how many people were still inside, Asst. Chief Officer Lewis Ramsay with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said. He said teams — including 125 firefighters on the scene — were working to stabilize the building and "get people out."

A crew of three — two police officers and a civilian pilot — were aboard the Eurocopter EC135 T2, according to Scottish police. Deputy Chief Constable Rose Fitzpatrick said it was too early to offer details on why the helicopter came down.

It "fell like a stone," Gordon Smart, editor of the Scottish edition of the Sun newspaper, told Sky News. "There was no fireball and I did not hear an explosion. The engine seemed to be spluttering."

Grace MacLean, who was inside the pub at the time, said she heard a "whoosh" noise and then saw smoke.
"The band were laughing, and we were all joking that the band had made the roof come down," she told the BBC. "They carried on playing, and then it started to come down more, and someone started screaming, and then the whole pub just filled with dust. You couldn't see anything, you couldn't breathe."

People formed a human chain to help pass unconscious people out of the pub so that "inch by inch, we could get the people out," said Labour Party spokesman Jim Murphy, who was in the area when the helicopter came down.

"The helicopter was inside the pub. It's a mess. I could only get a yard or two inside. I helped carry people out," Murphy told Sky News. "I saw a pile of people clambering out of the pub in the dust. No smoke, no fire, just a huge amount of dust."

He called it "a horrible, horrible scene."

Prime Minister David Cameron tweeted: "My thoughts are with everyone affected by the helicopter crash in Glasgow - and the emergency services working tonight."
 

Snicker

Sickest Bitch
I really much start reading the papers n watching the news more- I only found this out from a taxi driver yesterday!! .,k
 
I really much start reading the papers n watching the news more- I only found this out from a taxi driver yesterday!! .,k

here is an update for you:

(CNN) -- Authorities found eight bodies Saturday in the ruins of a Glasgow pub struck by a police helicopter and feared more would be discovered as they slowly explored the unstable building.

But it might have been much worse, according to a senior journalist who saw the crash.

The downtown Clutha Bar was packed with about 150 people listening to a band about 10:15 p.m. Friday, but far more people would have been endangered just a short walk away in Glasgow's central shopping district, said Gordon Smart, editor of the Scottish Sun newspaper.

From a nearby parking deck, Smart watched the helicopter tumble into the bar and waited for an explosion and fireball. A blast might have killed hundreds in the busy area, Smart said.

Instead, he said, there was an "eerie silence."

"I think it's a miracle that more people didn't die," Smart told CNN.

Three perish on helicopter, at least five on ground

Three of the dead were two police officers and the civilian pilot of the helicopter, Chief Constable Stephen House of Police Scotland said. Five more victims had been inside the pub.

Fourteen people remain seriously injured in Glasgow hospitals, House said. Earlier, police said 32 in total were taken to local hospitals.

Glasgow police early Sunday announced that one body had been removed from the building, with more still inside.

"Safety work will continue during the evening to stabilize the building and helicopter to ensure a safe working environment for emergency personnel," a police statement said.

House said he expected the recovery operation to continue for "many days."

Authorities offered no theories on the cause of the crash.

Police Scotland used its Facebook page to appeal to the public for "any photographs, audio or video footage they have of the incident or surroundings areas."

'Fell from the sky like a stone'

Smart was on top of a six-story parking deck when he heard a gargling sound "like a car running out of petrol but incredibly loud."

"I looked around, and in front of me, between 500 feet and 1,000 feet in the air, I could see a helicopter in distress. And then suddenly it just completely lost power and fell from the sky like a stone and tumbled over, nose over tail," Smart said.

From his vantage point in front of the pub, Smart could not see the helicopter after impact.

'What I did see, and it's something that will stick with me for the rest of my life, was Glaswegian people running toward the scene, not away from the scene, people running to help, not running away from what could have been a huge explosion," Smart said.

Grief and pride

The head of the Scottish government, First Minister Alex Salmond, said it was a "black day for Glasgow and for Scotland."

But, he said, people should take heart from the swift response of emergency responders and the "instinctive courage of ordinary Glaswegians" in the face of adversity.

"As First Minister, it's a day we can take great pride in how we've responded to this extraordinary tragedy," he said. Salmond said that Saturday is St. Andrew's Day, Scotland's national day.

British Prime Minister David Cameron extended his deepest sympathies to those who lost loved ones, and he praised emergency responders and "the bravery of ordinary Glaswegians who rushed to help."

Inside: Surreal quiet before alarm

The helicopter struck the pub as patrons listened to the Esperanza band, which had taken the stage a short time earlier.

"Most of the helicopter appeared to be inside the pub," said Jim Murphy, a UK member of parliament who arrived at the site moments later and saw people scrambling out to get out. Murphy represents a portion of Glasgow.

Patrons described a surreal quiet, followed by alarm.

"We were watching the band and there was kind of like a (roof) panel fell, there was a whoosh of dust, said Grace Maclean. "Then we laughed that the band said, 'We didn't think we were going to bring the roof down,'" Maclean said.

"The roof didn't come down. ...It didn't come completely down anyway," Maclean said.

"No one had a clue," she said. "There was no explosion. No bang. It was really quiet."

But it quickly became apparent something was wrong, and amid the choking dust there was an outburst of noise from the patrons.

"Everyone was yelling (for) their friends, but everyone seemed to find everyone," Maclean said.

'Blood pouring'

Band manager Gary Anderson described his bewilderment when he heard "a loud bang followed by lots of debris, smoke, stuff coming coming towards where I was standing at the door."

People he knew pulled him outside into the street, he said, where he could see the rotor blades sticking out of the building's roof.

"The fire brigade, paramedics, police were all there within minutes and everybody was just helping folk who could get out, just shouting on them because at this time you couldn't really see much inside, you were just trying to help people out and shouting to them, 'come here, come here' towards the doors," he said.

"There were people staggering out, there were lots of people coming out with blood pouring from their head and covered with all sorts of just debris from whatever it was had happened."

In a Facebook posting, the band indicated that all its members made it out safe.

"It seems that the band are all OK. Not so sure about everyone else," the post said.

A later post, by the band's bass guitar player, spoke of the realization "that it is all definitely horribly real. Despite the situation everyone was so helpful and caring of each other. The police, ambulances, firefighters all did a stellar job and continue to do so today in extremely difficult conditions."

Smoke and people running

Christina O'Neill, who saw the crash from her apartment across the street, said she heard what sounded like a low-flying airplane.

"I thought that didn't sound right for a couple of seconds," she said.

After the sound of impact, she saw smoke and people running from the pub.

"I know there were a lot of people lying on the ground kind of getting looked into," she said.

The pub's Facebook page contained numerous posts from people concerned about the incident.

Bond Air Services, which reportedly owns the helicopter involved, said it was working with police and emergency services.

"Our thoughts are with those who have been affected by this tragic incident," the company said in a statement.
 
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