Helicopter crashes in Russia's Far East, 3 killed

DOLINSK, Russia, Sept. 9 (UPI) -- A military helicopter crashed on Russia's Far Eastern Sakhalin Island Monday, killing three people, a local Emergency Ministry statement said.

The Mil Mi-2 Hoplite, a lightly armored, multi-purpose transport helicopter manufactured in Poland, was monitoring rivers in the region when it crashed 30 kilometers (19 miles) from the village of Dolinsk, the statement said.

Another aircraft was sent from the Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk airport to attempt a rescue mission, the Russian news agency RIA Novosti said.