Weather, waves hamper search for missing Marines

High waves expected for the next several days will hamper the search for 12 Marines missing at sea after two helicopters collided near the island of Oahu in Hawaii, U.S. Coast Guard officials said on Friday.

A search was underway Friday off the Hawaiian island of Oahu for the 12 people who were on board a pair of Marine helicopters that collided overnight. The wreckage was strewn over a 2-mile area, Marine Captain Timothy Irish said. The two aircraft are believed to be helicopters, Mooers also said. “We continue to monitor the ongoing search effort in Hawaii and are thankful for the hard work of the many federal and local heroes undertaking this search and rescue mission”, the family said in a statement released by the Massachusetts State Police. Coast Guard Spokesman Lieutenant Scott Carr explained that it was not clear whether the fireball and the flare were the same incident.

There was no immediate word on the fate of those aboard or what caused the accident. Somebody else reported a flare in the sky.

A woman who lives across the street from the beach, Elaray Navarro, explained that she heard two explosions late on Thursday and said that they were so loud that they shook the house.

Marine officials contacted the Coast Guard about the missing aircraft around 11 p.m. (4 a.m. Friday ET), Mooers said.

The Coast Guard said each of the aircraft had six people aboard, and they were from the Kaneohe Bay U.S. Marine Corps Air Station nearby. He did not know whether they were teaching the crew or just observing.

Families confirmed the identities of some of the missing Marines involved in a helicopter collision over Hawaii on Thursday.

Rough weather is making the search hard, with winds blowing up to 23mph and breaking surf up to 30ft.

One was Captain Kevin Roche, whose family released a statement hoping for his return and offering thanks for the report they received following the news. Known as Super Stallions, they are the USA military’s largest helicopter, capable of carrying a light armoured vehicle, 16 tonnes of cargo or a team of combat-equipped Marines. He says the swells were dispersing crash debris.