His roommate Harry Holberton likened it to a bomb going off.
“All over the hotel there was debris, parts of a windscreen,” Holberton told the ABC.
Police have cordoned off an exclusion zone around the hotel.
Caitlin Denning, Queensland Ambulance senior operations supervisor in Cairns, said between 300 and 400 people were being evacuated from the Double Tree Hotel as crews were arriving.
“At the time, it was too unsafe for us to enter the hotel to view the [impact site],” she told reporters.
“The helicopter impacted the roof of the hotel; however two propellers have dislodged.
“One landed on the Cairns Esplanade and there was a second propeller located in the hotel pool on the bottom floor and it was on fire.”
Streets have been closed after a helicopter crashed into a hotel roof in Cairns.Credit: QPS
Denning said the noise generated by the impact was frightening.
“There were reports of it sounding like a bomb, and seeing the fire and smoke, a lot of the occupants of the hotel were unsure of the situation.
“There is a lot of unease here.”
A police investigation is under way.
Read the full article here
