Seven Confirmed Dead in Helicopter Crash As Names of Victims Emerge
- A helicopter registered as 5Y-GYM crashed at the foot of Mt Ololokwe in Kirish, Samburu County, killing all seven people on board
- Five bodies were found burnt beyond recognition at the wreckage site, with aerial drone footage showing the aircraft completely gutted by fire
- The Samburu New Flash on August 19 released the identities of all seven victims, including the pilot and six passengers
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All seven occupants of a helicopter that crashed at the base of Mt Ololokwe in Kirish, Samburu County, Kenya, have been confirmed dead, with the identities of every victim now known.
Source: UGC
The aircraft, registered as 5Y-GYM and owned by Lady Lori, was a Loisaba-based helicopter carrying a group of tourists.
Witnesses and reports from The Samburu New Flash indicate the group was attempting to land on the iconic mountain when the crash occurred.
Rescue teams arriving at the scene discovered five bodies at the mountain's base, all burnt beyond recognition.
Aerial drone footage shared online showed the helicopter had been completely consumed by fire, while ground-level images captured by a local moran laid bare the scale of the destruction to the aircraft's frame.
At the time recovery operations began, two individuals remained unaccounted for, prompting fears they had also perished.
Those fears have since been confirmed by the Kenyan Police, with all seven people on board now reported dead.
The Facebook post below shows scenes from the helicopter crash site.
Helicopter crash: Identities of the seven victims
The Samburu New Flash has released the names of those who lost their lives in the crash.
The deceased are pilot Josh Outran, along with passengers Roger Duarte, Adam Navaty, Stephen Vascanknez, Henry Parra, Michael Contugi, and Suian Suarez, the sole female on board.
Mt Ololokwe, a flat-topped sandstone mountain regarded as sacred by the Samburu people, is one of the county's most visited natural landmarks.
In recent years, the site has increasingly attracted tourists arriving by air, drawn by its distinctive silhouette and cultural significance.
The news of the crash and the loss of all seven lives has prompted widespread mourning among Kenyans on social media.
Authorities had not released an official statement on the cause of the crash or confirmed the full casualty toll at the time of reporting, as recovery operations were still ongoing.
The Instagram post below shows the wreckage of the ill-fated Eurocopter EC130 B4 that was found completely gutted by fire at the base of Mount Ololokwe in Kirish, Samburu County.
One dead, 14 injured in Highway crash
Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that one person died, and 14 others were injured following a road collision on the Accra-Kumasi Highway near Paradise Restaurant on Wednesday, August 12, 2026.
The crash involved a MAN Diesel haulage truck and a Toyota Hiace passenger minibus.
According to a report by Citinewsroom, the impact caused significant damage to the side of the minibus and the front section of the truck.
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Proofreading by Samuel Gitonga, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.
Source: YEN.com.gh
