By Xinhua,
Tokyo : A helicopter carrying TV staff may have crashed Sunday afternoon in waters off northeastern Japan’s Aomori Prefecture, Kyodo News reported.
Local police said they received a call reporting a loud noise after the disappearance of the helicopter over the sea.
The helicopter’s company said four people were on board, including two from the Aomori bureau of the Asahi Broadcasting, which confirmed that the helicopter carrying their staff for assignment had not returned on time.
Police said they had started searching for the helicopter in the region.
The venue of the Group of Eight summit, which will begin Monday, is just north across the strait on the southern part of Japan’s northernmost Hokkaido Prefecture. Many foreign leaders, including U.S. President George W. Bush, arrived in Hokkaido for the summit earlier in the day.