At least 14 people have been killed in a helicopter crash in Saudi Arabia.
The accident occurred around 6am local time and all of the people killed were Saudi nationals, the the Saudi Ministry of Energy said. Everyone on board the chopper died.
There was no further information about what caused the crash.
The helicopter belonged to Aramco, the world’s largest oil company, which is majority-owned by Saudi Arabia.
Aramco has recently had to scramble as the Iran war disrupted oil supplies and raised prices. The company said it successfully shifted some oil exports to a pipeline to avoid the Strait of Hormuz, which has been disrupted by the war.
A skydiving plane also crashed in northeastern France today, killing all 11 people on board, the region’s prefect said.
The plane crashed in Tomblaine near the city of Nancy at 11am, Yves Seguy, the prefect of the Meurthe-et-Moselle region, told reporters near the scene.
It fell “suddenly, in the immediate vicinity of the airfield,” Seguy said, adding that nobody on the ground was hurt.
Emergency services responded immediately and were providing psychological support to several relatives of the victims, he said. Authorities were also collecting witness statements.
View 2 ImagesEmergency crews at the scene following the plane crash in Tomblaine, France(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Hervé Feron, the mayor of Tomblaine, said: “The plane was taking off when it suddenly crashed. At the moment, there is no explanation for the accident.
“The crash caused no collateral damage; it occurred on a bike path near a residential area.
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“Tomblaine is providing a room at a secret location to accommodate the victims’ families. According to my information, there were five instructors, five skydivers, and the pilot on board the plane, which was probably rented in Germany.
“The Greater Nancy Metropolitan Area is also providing a room for the victims to gather and pay their respects.”