Ukraine Interior Minister Killed in Helicopter Crash near Kiev Region
Ukrainian authorities said Wednesday that a helicopter crash outside the country's capital, Kiev, claimed the lives of at least 17 people, including the interior minister.
The aircraft fell near a kindergarten in the town of Brovary, some 20 kilometers northeast of Kiev, while children and staff were inside the building, according to Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the Ukrainian presidential office, the Moscow Times reported.
Ukrainian Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky, who was onboard the helicopter with other ministry officials, was killed in the crash, Ukrainian national police chief Igor Klymenko said in a statement on social media.
Sixteen other people were killed, including two children, Tymoshenko said.
At least 22 people, 10 of whom are children, have been hospitalized with injuries.
The cause of the crash is unclear.
Ukraine's interior ministry said it is considering sabotage, equipment malfunction and violation of safety rules as possible causes.
All students and staff have been evacuated from the building, the head of the Kiev regional administration, Oleksiy Kuleba, said on his Telegram channel.
Police and medics are working at the scene of the crash, he said.
Images shared by former presidential spokesperson Iuliia Mendel showed a charred rotor and the rest of the helicopter wreckage outside an apartment building entrance.
Another photo showed a person showing no signs of life lying face-down beside a children’s playground.
Russian and Ukrainian forces fought for control of Brovary in the early stages of the Russia-Ukraine war until Russia's troops withdrew in early April.