PAKISTAN – All 5 crew members were killed on Monday after a government helicopter crashed in northern Pakistan’s Diamer District of Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) region.

Faizullah Firaq, Gilgit-Baltistan’s government spokesperson said that the helicopter was being used by the Gilgit-Baltistan government for relief and rescue missions following the recent rains and floods in the region.

Firaq added that there were two pilots and three technical staff on board the aircraft.

The helicopter was conducting a test landing on a newly proposed helipad.

Rescue teams had reached the site of the crash and started their operations.

There was no immediate word on the cause of the crash, though the Gilgit-Baltistan government spokesperson cited a “technical failure.”