5 die in helicopter crash in Romania

Authorities say five people have died, including three German citizens, after a helicopter crashed into a lake in northwest Romania shortly after takeoff.

Authorities say five people have died, including three German citizens, after a helicopter crashed into a lake in northwest Romania shortly after takeoff.

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Ovidiu Petru Oltean, the mayor of the town of Taureni where the crash occurred, said the helicopter crashed on Monday minutes after takeoff into a two-meter (6.6 feet) deep lake.

He said three unidentified German businessmen, Romanian businessman Sorin Terbea, and the pilot died in the crash. They had been visiting a wood manufacturing plant in the area.

Cristian Boeriu of the emergency services division said that four bodies had been retrieved from the lake and one was trapped in the helicopter. A woman identified as Terbea's assistant survived the crash is being treated in a hospital.

Authorities are investigating the cause of the crash.