Again, military helicopter crashes in Adamawa

A Nigeria Air Force helicopter   on Monday crash landed near the River Benue bank   in Damare,   Girei Local Government Area of Adamawa State.
The chopper   had   five   crew members     said to be American military personnel and a Nigerian.
The Americans, it was learnt, were among the 40 United States military personnel helping   the Nigerian military in the on-going operations against Boko Haram in the North-East.
An eyewitness, who resides close to the crash site, told one of our correspondents that the   helicopter hovered round the area for about 30 minutes before it crashed.
He said that   he   rushed to the crash site but found out that all the crew members, except the pilot, had pulled themselves out of the wreckage of the helicopter.
The witness added that before security personnel arrived the scene,   he overheard one of them (crew members) directing that the helicopter   be set ablaze.
“The pilot and two other persons   suffered injuries. The pilot had a fracture on his leg and hand. An Air force ambulance came and evacuated all of them,” he said.
A military source said that the   40 US   soldiers   had shortly after their   arrival in Nigeria visited Mararaba-Mubi on Sunday for an on the spot assessment of the insurgents’ activities in the area.
Another source said, “The helicopter took off from the airport in Yola and came down just a few metres from the state capital.
“They were five crew members, including   four Americans, They all survived the crash. But those who were injured   are being treated in the hospital.”
Efforts   to get the reactions of the American Embassy in Abuja as of 7pm on Monday failed