Little hope of finding Chinese tycoon alive after copter crash
Print Edition
French police yesterday stepped up their search for a Chinese billionaire and two others feared dead after their helicopter crashed as he was surveying a newly purchased vineyard in southwest France.
There was little hope of finding alive Lam Kok, a 46-year-old Chinese tea-and-property tycoon, his interpreter and adviser Peng Wang or winemaker James Gregoire after police on Saturday recovered the body of Lam’s 12-year-old son from the back of the wrecked helicopter lying in 7 meters of water in the Dordogne river.
The four had boarded the helicopter piloted by Gregoire on Friday to make a celebratory tour of a Bordeaux chateau and wine-growing estate that Lam had just bought from the Frenchman.
After pausing the search on Saturday night, divers resumed scouring the cold waters of the Dordogne yesterday morning, working in near total obscurity. “We are meticulously combing the area, with practically no visibility, almost by hand,” local gendarmerie commander Ghislain Rety said.
Police said strong currents were hampering the search.
Helicopters with infrared cameras were flying over the river and a special sonar designed for finding bodies was deployed after arriving from the French city of Strasbourg, Rety said.
Slowly dragged behind a boat, the sonar criss-crossed the river between its banks, where some 100 police were also carrying out searches.
An autopsy was being conducted on the body of Lam’s son, Shun Yu Kok, yesterday but officials said there was little hope the reasons for the crash would be quickly identified.
Local prosecutor Christophe Auger said it might take several weeks before the cause is known.
“Every lead is being followed — the weather, the rules, maintenance, the pilot’s qualifications and the characteristics of the flight,” said Philippe Mole of the police air transport investigation department.
The body of the yellow-and-black Robinson R44 helicopter is to be lifted from the water today.
The doomed flight took place after a lavish event on Friday marking Lam’s 30 million euros (US$41 million) purchase of the 65-hectare wine estate, Chateau de la Riviere.
After a press conference and sumptuous dinner, Gregoire offered to take Lam on a short tour of the vineyards and surrounding grounds in the helicopter.
Lam and his wife headed a Hong Kong-based group named Brilliant, specializing in rare teas and luxury hotels in China. They had plans to turn the French chateau into a high-class tea- and wine-tasting center, with a hotel nearby.
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