Ecuador’s intelligence chief and 5 US residents died when a vacationer helicopter crashed in central Kenya on Wednesday, killing all seven individuals on board, officers stated.
The accident occurred Wednesday morning in Samburu County, north of the capital Nairobi, based on the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA).
The plane had departed from the Loisaba wildlife reserve.
Pictures shared by the Kenya Crimson Cross on X within the afternoon confirmed a crash website in flames. It stated troublesome terrain hampered rescue operations.
Search and restoration efforts are ongoing, hampered by troublesome terrain entry and an energetic fireplace on the crash website.
A further workforce has been dispatched from Isiolo to strengthen the operation.
Extra updates to observe. https://t.co/XUjWArYul3 pic.twitter.com/qSApuA1b0y
— Kenya Crimson Cross (@KenyaRedCross) August 19, 2026
“There have been seven individuals on board the helicopter, one pilot and 6 passengers,” Fredrick Kabunge, director of the Plane Accident Investigation Division (AAID), instructed AFP, confirming that nobody had survived.
Contacted by AFP Wednesday night, Samburu County police chief David Nkoroi stated “operations have been suspended till tomorrow due to darkness and the advanced nature of the bottom and the scene of the crash.”
Ecuador’s Transport Minister Roberto Luque stated the Latin American nation’s intelligence chief Michele Sensi-Contugi and his spouse have been amongst these killed.
“Right now Michele and Stephany left us too quickly. Pondering of their household, particularly their kids and fogeys,” Luque wrote on X.
Sensi-Contugi, 42, is a former businessman appointed as head of Ecuador’s Nationwide Intelligence Middle in 2024.
He was a detailed affiliate of Ecuador’s right-wing President Daniel Noboa, who has made his nation a key US companion in Washington’s renewed fight towards drug cartels.
A US State Division spokesperson stated that 5 Americans died within the crash, with out offering their identities.
Spanish-language broadcaster Telemundo nonetheless introduced that one among its senior managers in Florida, Jose Alberto Suarez, had died within the crash.
“We’re heartbroken to be taught the tragic information that Jose was killed in a helicopter accident in Kenya,” stated an announcement by Cesar Conde, newsgroup chairman of parent-company NBCUniversal, and two different executives.
“Jose was an distinctive colleague who cared deeply about his groups, the communities they served and the essential position our stations play in individuals’s lives.”
Kabunge stated the “helicopter was transporting vacationers for a scenic flight”.
In a video shared on X, black smoke might be seen billowing into the sky on the foot of Mount Ololokwe, the place the crash occurred.
Mount Ololokwe is a sacred mountain for the Samburu individuals, its summit rising 2,000 metres (6,560 ft) above sea degree, and it’s a widespread mountaineering vacation spot. Corporations provide helicopter flyovers.
The reason for the crash has not but been established, with KCAA saying investigations have been underway.
In March, a helicopter crash in western Kenya killed six individuals, together with a member of parliament.
(Aside from the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV workers and is printed from a syndicated feed.)
