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Bad weather hampers crash work Mourning for Nepal crash victims
(about 5 hours later)
Nepalese officials say they hope to retrieve the bodies of all the 24 people who were killed in a helicopter crash as soon as the weather improves. The Nepalese government has declared Wednesday a day of mourning for the 24 people who were killed in a helicopter crash in the east of the country.
Rescuers spotted the helicopter wreckage in Nepal's Taplejung district on Sunday, after a two-day search. Government offices, schools and Nepalese embassies abroad will be closed, an official said.
Rescuers say they hope to retrieve the bodies of the victims as soon as the weather improves at the crash site.
The government has ordered a probe into the crash - one of the worst in the country's aviation history.The government has ordered a probe into the crash - one of the worst in the country's aviation history.
Rescuers spotted the helicopter wreckage in Nepal's Taplejung district on Sunday, after a two-day search.
The helicopter lost radio contact during bad weather, after it took off in a mountainous district on Saturday.The helicopter lost radio contact during bad weather, after it took off in a mountainous district on Saturday.
A senior official of Taplejung district, Himnath Dawadi, told reporters that a temporary helipad had been constructed near the crash site.A senior official of Taplejung district, Himnath Dawadi, told reporters that a temporary helipad had been constructed near the crash site.
He said rescue workers were collecting the bodies - most of which are badly damaged - though the work is being hampered by bad weather.He said rescue workers were collecting the bodies - most of which are badly damaged - though the work is being hampered by bad weather.
Bad weatherBad weather
The private Shree Airlines helicopter crashed minutes after it took off from Ghunsa in Taplejung on Saturday.The private Shree Airlines helicopter crashed minutes after it took off from Ghunsa in Taplejung on Saturday.
The chopper was carrying seven WWF employees - four Nepalis, an Australian, a Canadian and an American.The chopper was carrying seven WWF employees - four Nepalis, an Australian, a Canadian and an American.
It was also carrying a Finnish diplomat, a US aid worker and two Russian crew members, as well as Nepalese officials and reporters.It was also carrying a Finnish diplomat, a US aid worker and two Russian crew members, as well as Nepalese officials and reporters.
The chief of WWF, James Leape, said the deaths were the biggest single loss of life in the organisation's 45-year-old history.
Reports quote local people as saying they heard a loud bang shortly after the helicopter, chartered by the WWF, took off.Reports quote local people as saying they heard a loud bang shortly after the helicopter, chartered by the WWF, took off.
The helicopter party was returning from a landmark ceremony to hand over the Kanchenjunga conservation area from the government to the local community.The helicopter party was returning from a landmark ceremony to hand over the Kanchenjunga conservation area from the government to the local community.
The helicopter, identified as a Russian-made Mi-172, had been on a 20-minute flight to a local airport, where the passengers had been due to take a flight to Kathmandu.The helicopter, identified as a Russian-made Mi-172, had been on a 20-minute flight to a local airport, where the passengers had been due to take a flight to Kathmandu.