Military chopper with CDS Gen Rawat crashes: What we know so far

New Delhi, Dec 08: A military chopper carrying Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, his wife and 12 others crashed in Tamil Nadu.

Here is what we know so far:

An IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter, with CDS Gen Bipin Rawat on board, met with an accident today near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu. An Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident, the Indian Air Force said in a statement.

Five people have died in the incident while two are in hospital. Further details are not known as of now.

The chopper was heading to the defence establishment in Wellington and the crash took place in the Nilgiris shortly after the Mi-Series chopper took off from the Army base in Sulur.

Visuals from the site showed the wreckage scattered on the hillside and rescuers at work. They were seen struggling through a thick smoke of fire.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi as per protocol.

The Tamil Nadu government has sent senior officials including the collector of Nilgiri to the crash site to assist in the rescue operations.

The forest minister of the state will also reach the spot.