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Helicopter crashes near school Helicopter crashes near school
(about 2 hours later)
A helicopter has crashed in Bettystown, County Meath. An eye-witness has described the lucky escape of a pilot whose helicopter crashed near a school in County Meath.
It is thought the pilot was the only person on board at the time of the crash at about 1700 BST. The helicopter took off from Bettystown at about 1700 BST, but a short time later crashed near a hotel currently used as a temporary secondary school.
An eyewitness who saw him walk away unscathed said he was "an incredibly lucky man". He had just left passengers off on the beach of the seaside town. "He climbed down, ran away and when he was just 40 metres away it just exploded. Debris went everywhere," said eye-witness Peter Whelan.
The helicopter made it to about 70ft in the air before crashing beside the Neptune Hotel, currently being used as a temporary secondary school. Passengers had been left off at the beach just before the accident.
It caught fire upon impact, but firefighters have since extinguished the blaze.
One person was taken to hospital in nearby Drogheda.One person was taken to hospital in nearby Drogheda.