Source: New Zealand Police (District News)
Police can now confirm two people have died in a helicopter crash near the Kekerengu Rivermouth, north of Kaikoura this afternoon.
Three other people have been seriously injured and are being airlifted to Christchurch Hospital.
An earlier media release advised there were six people on board but this was incorrect. There were five people in total on board.
Further details regarding the deceased and injured, including ages and genders, will not be released until all necessary family notifications have been carried out.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) have been advised.
Photo: RNZ / Tracy Neal
Police said emergency services were alerted to the crash on the beach at Kekerengu Rivermouth, near the town of Clarence, at 12.40pm.
They said five people were involved in the crash, including the pilot and four passengers. Earlier reports of six people being on board were incorrect, they said.
Clarence residents helped pull all five from the crash.
Local resident Ian Mehrtens said he was drinking a cup of tea at home when he watched the helicopter start going around in circles, then fall from the sky.
He immediately raced to help, along with four of five others. Mehrtens said people were trying to get the injured free of the wreckage in case it caught alight.
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