The remote and rugged terrain on the Hawaiian island of Kauai where a sightseeing helicopter crashed, killing all seven people aboard, could make it difficult or even impossible to piece together what led to the wreck.
Federal investigators who arrived Sunday are calling the inaccessible area of steep cliffs and thick jungle canopies one of the most challenging crash sites they have seen.
Before the helicopter crashed on a mountaintop Thursday, it was set to tour the rugged Na Pali Coast, the picturesque and remote northern shoreline of Kauai that was featured in the film "Jurassic Park." In Hawaii, federal investigators have started their work remotely even if they can't get to the Kauai site, Weiss said, including studying the fast-changing weather at the time of the crash.
The inaccessibility of the site also could hamper efforts to bring the wreckage elsewhere to study it.Six people from two different families and a pilot were on the flight. Police said the flight manifest listed the pilot as Paul Matero, 69, of Wailua, Hawaii. Two of the passengers were 47-year-old Amy Gannon and 13-year-old Jocelyn Gannon of Wisconsin.
Experts say Kauai's topography and weather pose unique challenges to pilots and that it would be difficult to find anywhere to make an emergency landing. U.S. Rep. Ed Case of Hawaii has said more needs to be done to make tour helicopters and small planes safe.
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