Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika and several armed forces personnel lost their lives after an Indian Air Force Mi-17V5 chopper crashed in Coonoor of Tamil Nadu’s Nilgiris district on Wednesday.

A video of the helicopter vanishing into mist moments ahead of the crash has been shared by a news agency. The footage was apparently sourced from the locals who were present near the accident spot. An eyewitness was quoted as saying, “I first heard a loud noise. When I came outside to see what had happened, I saw the helicopter crash into a tree. There was a huge fireball and then it crashed into another tree. I saw two-three people coming out of the helicopter, they were completely burnt and started falling.” The Indian Air Force (IAF), which ordered an inquiry into the accident, has not confirmed the authenticity of the video yet.

The mortal remains of General Bipin Rawat and his wife Madhulika are expected to reach Delhi by Thursday evening followed by cremation on Friday. Brig LS Lidder, Lt Col H Singh, Wg Cdr PS Chauhan, Sqn Ldr K Singh, JWO Das, JWO Pradeep A, Hav Satpal, Nk Gursewak Singh, Nk Jitender, L/Nk Vivek, and L/Nk S Teja are others who died in the crash.