Five Americans among seven killed in safari helicopter crash in Kenya

Officials say all seven people onboard killed, including Telemundo executive and Ecuador intelligence chief

Seven people, including five Americans, were killed when a safari helicopter crashed on Wednesday morning in a remote part of northern Kenya , according to local police and the state department.

Among the dead were an executive with Telemundo, the US-based Spanish-language network owned by NBC Universal, and the director of Ecuador’s national intelligence service.

The helicopter crashed at 9.13am while flying from the Loisaba Conservancy to the Ewaso Nyiro area in Samburu county, according to the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority, which said in a statement that an investigation was under way. It said there were seven people onboard – six passengers and the pilot.

Late on Wednesday, David Nkoroi, the police commander for Samburu, told reporters that all seven people onboard had died.

In Washington, the state department said five of those killed were US citizens. “The US embassy is in touch with local authorities and is providing consular assistance,” it said. “We extend our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones on their loss.”

The identities of the victims were not revealed but a local television station in Miami, Florida, said that José Suárez, 55, president and GM of several Telemundo stations in Florida, was among those killed.

“We are heartbroken to learn the tragic news that José was killed in a helicopter accident in Kenya,” the NBC affiliate in Miami quoted from a joint statement from NBC Universal and Telemundo leadership.

The helicopter crashed in a rugged area in the foothills of Mount Ololokwe, a popular tourist destination in the country, local media reported. The helicopter, owned by local company Lady Lori Helicopters, was carrying guests with the travel company +Beyond.

Lady Lori Helicopters said in a statement that the aircraft was operating a charter flight when it crashed.

Tropic Air Kenya, a local safari operator, said in a statement that it dispatched two of its helicopters to aid search and rescue operations.

The aviation authority said the aircraft was a Eurocopter EC130 B4.

Ecuador confirmed later on Wednesday that Michele Sensi-Contugi, director of the country’s national intelligence center, died in the helicopter crash in Kenya.

In a statement posted on X, the presidency said: “In this moment of deep sorrow, the government extends its heartfelt condolences to his family, loved ones and close associates.”

Sensi-Contugi was visiting Kenya as a tourist with his wife, Stephany Hollihan Vasconez, who also died in the crash. She was a US and Ecuadorian citizen. They are survived by their two children.

Helicopter crashes have happened with increasing regularity in Kenya, which has a thriving tourism industry that depends on domestic carriers to ferry visitors to distant places like Mount Ololokwe.

In February, a legislator was among six people who died after a helicopter crash in a hilly area of western Kenya.