Last body recovered from helicopter crash; victims identified

ONN. Ohio News Now: Last body recovered from helicopter crash; victims identified

Last body recovered from helicopter crash; victims identified

LIHUE, Hawaii -- Rescue workers removed the last of five bodies Friday from the wreckage of a helicopter that crashed on a steep mountain slope on Sept. 24.

Authorities also released the identities of the victims, two of whom were from Ohio, while removing most of the wreckage from the site in central Kauai.

The first four bodies were recovered earlier this week, but rescue workers had been unable to retrieve the fifth victim, who was pinned beneath the wreckage.

The last body, which an official said was that of Thomas Huemmer, 36, of Avon, Ohio, was brought down from the mountain Friday on the second of two trips to retrieve the wreckage

Authorities identified the other victims as pilot Shankar Tummala, 39, of Kauai; Willy Braun, 59, and Heike Braun, 38, of Germany, and Tamara Zytkowski, 30, of Avon, Ohio.

The helicopter, owned by Bali Hai Helicopter Tours, crashed into the side of the mountain, leaving wreckage about 2,700 feet up.

Nicole Charnon, an investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board, said no cause had been determined for the crash.

"We have a decent amount of wreckage here," she said. "We've got things to look at."

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