Lima: Ten people were killed when a helicopter of mining giant Rio Tinto crashed in central Peru, according to media reports.

Television channel Canal N reported on Wednesday that rescue teams found the wreckage of the chopper in the Sexi district of the Cajamarca province, some 700 km northeast of Peruvian capital, Lima.

The Bell 412B helicopter flying for the British-Australian Rio Tinto mining enterprise went missing from radar screens Tuesday morning. It had left the company's La Granja copper project, located 260 km north of Lima in Cajamarca, with two pilots and eight passengers aboard.

Residents of a nearby village said almost immediately that the helicopter had crashed during a storm. However, strong winds hampered the efforts of rescue teams.

Rio Tinto has managed the La Granja mine since 2006. The helicopter belonging to the Helinka-Evergreen company had been covering the 260-km stretch between Cajamarca and Chiclayo for Rio Tinto.

Source : IANS