Kaikōura helicopter crash: Andrew and Lin Davidson’s shocked friends reunite at family home in Ohoka

The devastated friends of the couple who died in yesterday’s horrific helicopter crash north of Kaikōura have gathered at their family home.

Pilot Andrew Hamish Davidson, 60, and his wife Lin Chen, 39, were killed when their new helicopter crashed on a stony beach 30 kilometers north of Kaikōura around 12:40 p.m. yesterday during a family trip.

Two of her children were injured, including her son Angus, a seventh-year student at Christchurch Medbury private school for boys, along with a third child.

This afternoon, Medbury wrote to parents and caregivers to confirm “with great regret” that “the family named in the Kaikōura helicopter crash yesterday is one of us.”

“Angus and two other children were airlifted to Wellington Hospital and our
The thoughts and prayers are with them and the medical staff who oversee their care, “said Director Ian Macpherson.

“The Medbury community is strengthened in our Christian foundations and in the collective care and support it offers in difficult times.”

Medbury, which has already closed this year, says that supporting the Davidson family, both now and in the future, is “paramount”, along with support for their wider community.

And so the school will open on Monday between 10 am and 11 am at the Medbury Center for families to come together if they need support.

“A variety of counseling services will also be made available to support our community during this difficult time,” Macpherson said.

“The school will continue to provide relevant information when it becomes available.

“In the meantime, we ask that you keep Angus and the Davidson family as a whole in your prayers.”

St Andrew’s College in Christchurch also paid tribute to Davidson and Chen, with two children injured in the accident going to school.

Principal Christine Leighton emailed parents this afternoon.

“We suspect by now you have heard the devastating news of the helicopter crash in Kaikōura yesterday afternoon,” he wrote.

“It is with great regret that we learn that the families of St Andrew’s College are involved. Andrew Davidson and his wife Lin Chen were tragically killed in the accident and two High School children were injured and are in Wellington Hospital. Our hearts go out to families and their loved ones.

“We know this news will devastate you and many of you are supporting each other and supporting your children.

“The St Andrew staff is supporting those involved in whatever way we can, respecting their privacy at this tragic time.”

Leighton said a variety of counseling services will be made available to support his community, including a time for families to gather at the school’s Centennial Chapel with members of the chaplaincy and counseling teams on Monday, 11 am at noon.

Police confirmed the details of the deceased today.

“This was an incredible tragedy and the police are working to support the family and friends of the deceased,” police said.

“The family of the deceased has requested privacy at this time.”

Locals who witnessed the machine fall from the sky rushed to lift the injured occupants from the rubble.

The Transportation Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) has launched an investigation.

Davidson had just acquired ownership of the Eurocopter EC120B machine in October.

The businessman from Ohoka, north of Canterbury, had set up the helicopter rental company Glenloch Helicopters Ltd a month earlier.

The couple’s friends met this morning at their Ohoka lifestyle block, north of Christchurch, where they also operated a B&B.

Lin’s elderly parents are understood to be on the property, but speak little English.

The large lifestyle block features an aircraft hanger and wind socks.

Upset friends have been shaken by the double tragedy and today they say they are waiting for information.

TAIC researchers are now on the beach amid the wreckage. He was scheduled to give an update on the incident at 1 p.m.

At 2 pm, a ceremony and blessing was scheduled at the site, organized by local Ngai Tahu leaders based in Kaikoura.

Investigators will review the wreckage as they work to understand the circumstances that led to the accident.

Harald Hendel, TAIC’s chief accident investigator, said there may be people who saw what happened, given the location of the accident next to a busy cafe on State Highway 1.

He called for witnesses, “especially anyone who captured the accident on their vehicle’s dash cam or other recording devices, to contact TAIC as soon as possible.”

They have established a perimeter around the remains that prohibits public access, to protect the evidence.

“Your initial work will include inspecting the wreckage, mapping the site, and speaking with witnesses. Gathering additional evidence in the coming weeks and months will likely include examining the helicopter’s components, looking for any logged data from the helicopter’s electronics, and obtaining maintenance records. “.

New Zealand Fire and Emergency Operational Insurance (Fenz) team member Darryl Papesch was one of the first responders on the scene and said that locals had pulled everyone out of the wreck when he arrived.

He confirmed that the three survivors were children, who were flown to Wellington Hospital for treatment.

“We had conversations with them, not a proper conversation, but they knew their names and how old they were,” Papesch said.

“The premises were outstanding, in a chaotic situation they were outstanding.

“The three agencies, Fenz, the police, St John, worked together and just got down to business.”

Ian Mehrtens spent his 69th birthday pulling dead and injured people from the wreckage across the road from his home in Kekerengu, and there is a picture that will stay with him forever.

“The little doll … the little girl who was injured, her doll was in the surf and I picked it up,” Mehrtens said.

“I took the girl to the beach to where her mom was laying. I was wondering ‘where is my mom … is my mom okay?’ and I said ‘yeah she’s fine’, but she was far from it. “

Mehrtens and other locals rushed to the scene and began pulling the victims out, terrified that the smoldering remains would catch fire at any moment.

He said the pilot was obviously dead and an adult female “didn’t look good.”

Three children were injured and rescued, including a boy and a teenage girl with broken legs.

Mehrtens and his wife Lyn own a beachfront shelter where the accident occurred, opposite Kekerengu tent and camp, 30 km north of Kaikoura.

They were standing in the kitchen with a friend watching the helicopter land when suddenly something went terribly wrong.

“I was coming ashore and I thought I was putting on a display for the passengers, showing them how the helicopter worked,” Mehrtens said.

“It started spinning … then it just disappeared … clunk … bang. I thought, ‘Shit, oh my gosh’ – it just collapsed and I thought, ‘Crikey, they’re going to need a little help.”

He got on his quad bike and headed to the beach, where he met his neighbor and partner, who asked not to be identified in this story, on his tractor.

The helicopter had sunk into the water, so the men, assisted by locals, campers and tourists, tied a rope to the tail and dragged it from the waves to the beach.

Then they started frantically pulling people out.

Finally, they recovered the pilot, left him on the beach and covered his face with a blanket, placing stones around him so that the coastal wind would not carry him away.

“I didn’t want to see that,” Mehrtens said.

“Poor bastard … something must have really gone wrong.”

He said the helicopter crumpled “like tissue” and his wife described it as “like aluminum foil.”

“Suddenly the course was altered … there was a big crack and I thought maybe it landed on their runners and they were upset, but no,” Mehrtens recalled.

“[The kids] they screamed in pain … The older girl was not good.

“There were six of us trying to get them out, the worst part was trying to get them out of their seat belts.”