A crop-dusting helicopter crashed after hitting an overhead power cable in Wolseley in the Western Cape, killing the pilot and disrupting electricity supply in the area on Tuesday morning [January 19].
Eskom confirmed the crash in a tweet, saying the electricity supply to Ceres was interrupted around 9am on Tuesday morning “due to a helicopter crash into the 132kV Romansrivier/Wittenberg line”.
Eskom indicated that the electricity supply would be restored once the crash site had been cleared.
#EskomWCape electricity supply to Ceres was interrupted at about 09:00 today due to a helicopter crash into the 132kV Romansrivier/Wittenberg line. The emergency dept and SAPS are on-site & entry is currently prohibited. Restoration of supply will commence when site is cleared.
— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) January 19, 2021
Captain FC van Wyk of the of the South African Police Service (SAPS) confirmed that the pilot had died in the crash, to online publication, The South African.
“This office can confirm a helicopter crash on a farm near Wolseley on 2021-01-19,” said van Wyk.
#crash We can confirm that a crop dusting helicopter have hit an overhead power cable near Ou Stasie outside Wolseley, Western Cape and crashed. Unconfirmed reports at this stage suggests that the pilot died. Awaiting more information. @1SecondLater @MARIUSBROODRYK pic.twitter.com/eyGlY8cyoX
— BOSBEER.COM (@BOSBEER2006) January 19, 2021
The owner of the farm where the crash took place contacted the police at approximately 7.45am, according to van Wyk, who added that the young pilot, whose age is unknown, was fatally injured.
Picture: Twitter/@Bosbeer2006
