A firefighting helicopter has crashed in Greece while battling a forest fire on the island of Samos.
The Greek coastguard said that the aircraft was carrying four people when it went down in the Aegean Sea on Wednesday afternoon.
Two people were seriously injured in the crash, while one of the crew is still missing.
“The Romanian pilot of the helicopter was found safe and sound by the Greek coastguard off Samos and transferred to the island’s hospital,” an official told AFP.
“Two crew members, a Romanian and a Moldavian, were found unconscious in the water and resuscitation efforts are still underway,” they added.
A search and rescue operation is underway to find the fourth Greek crew member, they added on Twitter.
A total of three helicopters and five planes had been deployed to help firefighters tackle the blaze on Samos, The Greek Fire Serbice added in a statement.
Following last year’s deadly fires in the country, foreign rescue workers have been deployed in Greece under an EU mechanism to boost resources.