U.S. Coast Guard: helicopter with seven on board missing off Hawaii

[December 27, 2019]    (Reuters) - The U.S. Coast Guard said it was searching for a helicopter with seven people on board that failed to return from a tour off the Hawaiian island of Kauai on Thursday evening.

The owner reported the helicopter was overdue at 6:06 p.m., the Coast Guard said in a statement on Friday http://bit.ly/2SqlOYy.

"They stated the aircraft was due back at 5:21 p.m. from a tour of Kauai's Nā Pali Coast with one pilot and six passengers," the statement added. Two of the missing passengers were minors.

The helicopter was equipped with an electronic locator but no signals had been received, the statement said.

An official at the Joint Rescue Coordination Center described weather conditions as challenging.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Giles Elgood)

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