Panama City: A helicopter crashed into a supermarket in a busy Panama City neighbourhood, killing and injuring several people, Panamanian authorities have said.

Mayor Juan Carlos Navarro said visiting Chilean military officers were aboard the helicopter, and told TV Channel 4 news that the crash caused "a considerable number of mortal victims."

Chilean diplomatic sources said the fatalities included the head of Chile's national police, Jose Alejandro Bernales, and his wife.

The helicopter, belonging to Panama s National Air Service, crashed in the neighbourhood of Calidonia yesterday, starting a fire.

Civil aviation sources said that at least 12 people were aboard the aircraft, including three crew members.

Panama's Channel 13 television earlier reported a toll of four dead and two injured. Firefighters were on the scene trying to extinguish the fire. The cause of the accident was not yet known.

Source : PTI