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Three people were killed, at least two of them decapitated, and one seriously injured when a helicopter crashed into a restaurant carpark in the Camargue region in southern France, a local source said today.
Two of the victims were parents walking in the proximity of the restaurant while their five-year-old daughter looked on in horror, an eyewitness at the scene said.
The incident happened in the hamlet of Villeneuve when the Alouette 2-type aircraft carrying four people crashed on Sunday afternoon local time.
"It was 3.30pm. The helicopter crashed onto parked cars close to the restaurant. The victims were the parents of a five-year-old girl. At least two of them were been decapitated," said the source, a former AFP journalist.
"The little girl cried out 'My daddy doesn't have a head anymore'. Everyone is in a state of shock," he added.
The body of an unidentified man was also found at the scene, local firefighters said.
A women in her forties suffered serious injuries and was rushed to a Marseilles hospital Sunday, they added.
The passengers of the helicopter were unhurt but in a state of shock.
"The pilot is very shocked. He explained that the helicopter seemed to fail and he was unable to steady it," the source said.
- AFP
