国际英语新闻:Massive search continues for missing tour helicopter with 7 aboard in Hawaii

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 27 (Xinhua) -- A massive search is continuing to find a tour helicopter with seven people aboard, which went missing on Thursday in Hawaii, authorities said Friday.

"The search continues for the seven people and any sign of the aircraft on Kauai," said Lt. Chloe Harmon, command duty officer of the U.S. Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu, in a press release Friday morning.

"We appreciate the substantial assistance of our partners to continue the search overnight and maximize search efforts in the area," added Harmon.

The owner of the helicopter contacted the center in Honolulu at 6:06 p.m. local time on Thursday. They said the aircraft was due back at 5:21 p.m. from a tour of Kauai's Na Pali Coast with one pilot and six passengers. Two of the six passengers are reportedly minors. The aircraft is equipped with an electronic locator, but no signals have been received, according to the Coast Guard.

The Coast Guard, working with multiple agencies, established an incident command post on Kauai in response to the missing commercial helicopter. A Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules airplane crew and an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Air Station Barbers Point were scheduled to conduct first light searches. A Coast Guard Station Kauai 45-foot Response Boat-Medium crew would also arrive on the scene at first light and search.

In the morning, Coast Guard Cutter William Hart was going to arrive in the search area, and a U.S. Navy MH-60R Seahawk helicopter would also launch for a search. Further air support from the U.S. Department of Defense was expected.

Kauai Fire Department is coordinating local efforts from the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Kauai National Guard, and commercial helicopter support.

"We are currently coordinating with federal and local agencies and are ready to deploy state resources as needed to help in the search effort," Hawaii Governor David Ige said in a statement on Friday.

The missing aircraft is reportedly a Eurocopter AS350 helicopter.

A local news outlet, Hawaii News Now, reported that it had confirmed the aircraft belongs to Safari Helicopters, a tour helicopter company based in Lihue but the company's officials declined to comment on the situation.

"Notable regions on Kauai include Mount Waialeale, Waimea Canyon, and the Na Pali Coastline. All our Kauai helicopter flights take you to these locations, as well as other regions on the North Shore and interior of Kauai," the company introduced its helicopter tours on its official website.

Friday's forecast includes continued winds around 28 mph with wind waves at 7 feet, a northwest swell of 6 feet, and scattered rain showers. A small craft advisory is in effect for the waters around Kauai and northwest Oahu, according to the press release of the Coast Guard.

With an area of 1,456 square kilometers, Kauai is the fourth-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. Nearly 80 percent of Kauai is uninhabited, and much of that is a state park. Kauai's natural beauty is accessed or viewed daily by visitors aboard helicopters from several tour companies depending on the weather.