Helicopter crashes into the top of a hotel in Cairns City, sparking mass exclusion zone
A helicopter has crashed into the roof of a hotel in Cairns City, prompting mass evacuations from the area.
Queensland Police have declared a Public Safety Preservation Act (PSPA) and an exclusion zone has been established includes Esplanade, Minnie Street, Aplin Street and Grafton Street.
Emergency services were called to the accident on the Esplanade in Cairns City, Australia at around 1.50am this morning.
Queensland Ambulance confirmed in a social media post that “a helicopter crashed onto the roof of a hotel,” adding: “The building was evacuated as a precaution and no people on the ground were injured.”
The public has been advised to avoid the area while police continue to investigate the incident.
A view of the police cordon outside a hotel in the Esplande area of Cairns City where a helicopter has crashed
Queensland Ambulance said there were ‘no injuries to people on the ground’
An aerial view of Cairns City in Australia, where a helicopter has crashed into the roof of a hotel [Stock image]
According to reports on social media, the hotel is said to be the Hilton Doubletree.
Someone said on X, formerly Twitter, that people are ‘in the evacuation centre at the Hilton in Cairns. There has been no communication from the authorities to us, the evacuees’.