NARA (TR) – Some 1,000 kilograms of iron plates mistakenly fell 200 meters from a helicopter on Friday but there were no injuries, the Mainichi Shimbun reported on Saturday (August 6).
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport is sending investigators to the Nagatono area of the village of Totsukawa in Nara Prefecture, where about 800 kilograms of iron plates fell 200 meters from a helicopter operated by Aero Asahi Corp. on behalf of Kansai Electric Power Co., Inc. on Friday.
There were no reported injuries and buildings were also unaffected.
Kansai Electric said the helicopter took off from Otocho Shimizu, Gojo, to transport the cargo to its destination about 3.2 kilometers away at an altitude of 200 meters for a transmission tower reconstruction project.
The iron plates, measuring around 1.5 meters tall, 3 meters tall and 2 centimeters thick, were secured with wire and fastened to a hook hanging from the helicopter.
Kansai Electric has opened an investigation and believes the iron plates could have slid off the wiring.
There was another incident in March where a helicopter of the same model dropped its cargo while flying over Mihama, Fukui Prefecture, Kansai Electric said.
