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August 5th, 2013 
Peter Nolan 
Kyodo News via AP
A firefighting helicopter hovers over smoke from the crash site of U.S. Air Force rescue helicopter HH-60 at Camp Hansen, on the southern island of Okinawa, Japan, on Monday.
TOKYO – A U.S. military HH60 Pave Hawk helicopter carrying four personnel crashed during a training exercise on Japan’s southern island of Okinawa on Monday, officials said.
There was no immediate word on the status of those on board, according to a statement from U.S. Air Force spokeswoman 1st Lt. Hope Cronin.
U.S. military firefighters were tackling a blaze resulting from the crash, she said.
The crash took place at 4 p.m. local time Monday (3 a.m. ET Sunday) at a maneuvering ground inside the U.S. Marine’s Camp Hansen in central Okinawa.
“This is really regrettable. We are asking the U.S. side for a speedy supply of information,” Japan’s Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera told reporters, according to Reuters. “We plan to strongly demand for investigation into the cause of the accident and measures to prevent a recurrence.”
Video footage from Japanese broadcaster NHK showed smoke rising from a fire on a remote mountainside. NTV and NHK said local police were attending the scene of the crash but did not have any information.
Residents of Okinawa, host to the bulk of U.S. military forces in Japan, have long complained at the scale of the U.S. military presence in the area, Reuters said.
NBC News’ Alastair Jamieson and Reuters contributed to this report.
Related:
- In Okinawa, the war isn’t over: Protests aimed at US base expansion
- 2 US sailors sentenced to prison for rape of woman in Okinawa, Japan
- ‘We must restore the bond’: Japan’s new PM vows tighter ties with US
This story was originally published on Mon Aug 5, 2013 6:33 AM EDT
Source Article from http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/08/05/19874042-us-military-chopper-crashes-in-okinawa-japan-with-four-on-board?lite&ocid=msnhp&pos=5
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