The wreckage of the helicopter that crashed at Ololokwe in Samburu county on August 20, 2026. [Bruno Mutunga, Standard]
Investigators are focusing on weather, human and equipment aspects as the probable cause of the helicopter crash that killed Ecuador’s head of intelligence Michele Sensi-Contugi, his wife, four Americans and the pilot on Wednesday.
The ill-fated chopper went up in flames at the foot of Mt Ololokwe in Samburu County, killing on the spot Sensi-Contugi, the Director General of the National Intelligence Centre of Ecuador and his wife Stephany Maria Hollihan Vasconez de Sensi-Contugi.
Americans killed in the helicopter crash have been identified as Roger Duarte, Adam Navaty, Henry Parra and Jose Suarez while the pilot is Josh Outran. Five bodies were removed from the scene on Wednesday.
Rescue and recovery teams returned to the scene on Thursday to retrieve the remaining two bodies.
The tragedy has cast a shadow over the tourism sector in the area where choppers are frequently used to transport visitors between remote destinations.
Aircraft Accident Investigation Department (AAID) cautioned against speculating on the possible cause of the crash that took the lives of the tourists said to have been on holiday.