Two people died early Thursday when a fire-fighting helicopter crashed on the island of Corsica, local police said. The accident occurred after the Air-Crane helicopter experienced mechanical difficulty while fighting a brush fire on the island. As the two pilots attempted to return to a military base in southern Corsica, it suddenly crashed from an altitude of some 200 meters. French Interior Minister Dominique de Villepin expressed his condolences to the families of the two victims, a Frenchman and a Canadian.
