Elements of the Army and rescue forces at the site where the aircraft collapsed, in Aguascalientes, on November 17, 2022. Cuartoscuro
The Secretary of Public Security of Aguascalientes, Porfirio Sánchez, died this Thursday after the helicopter in which he was traveling collapsed.
At least four other crew members have died in the incident, Governor Teresa Jiménez has confirmed.
The aircraft has lost control and crashed head-on into the ground, near the municipality of Jesús María, only about 11 kilometers from the capital of the Mexican Bajío State.
"There are no survivors," lamented the president
The collapse occurred around eight in the morning.
In the videos shared through social networks, it is observed how the tip of
Águila 1
, the helicopter of the state security forces, crashes in an urban area, very close to a convenience store.
A few seconds after impact there was an explosion and a cloud of smoke rose.
"Everything indicates that it was an accident, although we must wait for the results of the expert reports," Jiménez declared at an urgent press conference.
The governor has said that the pilot had to maneuver to fall into a vacant lot and avoid further damage.
Sánchez was traveling in the helicopter while coordinating a security operation.
Also on board were pilot Olegario Andrade Zamorano, captain Víctor Manuel Valdés and gunners Juan Humberto Rincón Martínez and Alejandro Serafín Guerrero.
"We deeply regret the death of these five men," declared the governor, who has expressed her condolences to the families of the victims.
The president of the conservative National Action Party has added that investigations have already begun to clarify the facts and in the midst of speculation that the incident could have been caused.
Jiménez has said that she will start from the hypothesis that it was an accident, but she has promised that all lines of investigation will be exhausted.
"We are not going to lower our guard, the security of the State is guaranteed," she assured.
Jiménez came to the Government of Aguascalientes after obtaining 53% of the votes in the elections last June and took office only on October 1.
Sánchez was arrested in February of this year by elements of the Attorney General's Office and accused of torture, abuse of authority and false statements.
At the time of the arrest, he also served as Secretary of Security of the previous Administration, headed by Martin Orozco, also a PAN member.
The official was released in September for lack of evidence.
Jiménez bet on him again to take charge of the State Police on the grounds that he was an experienced man and that he had managed to place the entity among the safest states in Mexico.
These types of mishaps are not a novelty in the official environment.
Between 2001 and 2021 there were 39 air mishaps, in which 94 soldiers died, according to data from the Federal Directorate of Civil Aeronautics (DFAC).
Only between 2013 and 2018, 46 people died in this type of accident.
The Army attributes the responsibility for most of these types of events to human failure, which corresponds to seven out of 10 cases, compared to the minority, associated with technical problems or weather conditions.
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