The number of people injured in the helicopter crash in Dagestan has risen to five.

One of the victims of the Kizlyar Electromechanical Plant helicopter crash has died in an Izberbash hospital, bringing the death toll to five. Two victims are in the Makhachkala burn center.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," a Kizlyar Electromechanical Plant helicopter crashed this afternoon onto a private home in the Karabudakhkent district. Four people were killed, three were hospitalized, one of them in critical condition.

Doctors were unable to save the helicopter crash victim, who remained in Izberbash due to his non-transportable condition, the Dagestan Ministry of Health reported on its official Telegram channel.

A patient who suffered burns over 100% of his body and was admitted to the hospital in critical condition died in the intensive care unit of the Izberbash Central City Hospital, the department said in a statement.

Two other victims were taken for treatment to the burn center of the Republican Clinical Hospital in Makhachkala. "One of them is in serious condition, the other is in moderate condition," the republic's Ministry of Health reported. Doctors in Dagestan consulted with specialists from the Federal Center for Disaster Medicine regarding their treatment, the press service noted.

One of the victims transferred for treatment to Makhachkala is the son of the head of the Kizlyar Electromechanical Plant, who also serves as the executive director of the plant. The other is a helicopter pilot, Interfax-Yug reported, citing the Dagestan Ministry of Industry and Trade.

"The son of Ibrahim Akhmatov, CEO of JSC Kizlyar Electromechanical Plant, and the company's executive director, Akhmat Akhmatov, was on board the Ka-226 that crashed in the Karabudakhkent district of Dagestan. He and the helicopter pilot are receiving treatment at the Burn Center of the Republican Clinical Hospital in Makhachkala," the agency quoted a source as saying. All other people on board were also plant employees.

VGTRK correspondent in Dagestan, Sarkar Magomedov, who visited the scene, published information received from local residents on his Telegram channel.

“According to eyewitnesses, the helicopter almost landed on a platform near the crash site, but at the last moment it suddenly took off and began circling over the recreation center and the sea, billowing smoke. The owner of one of the houses even mentioned that the helicopter almost landed in the water before rising again. Apparently, the pilot struggled to control the situation until the very end. CCTV footage also confirms that the helicopter began to disintegrate while still in the air. The footage shows that it fell almost without a tail,” the journalist wrote, noting that “the victims died a horrible death.”

Investigators have opened a criminal case under the article on violating air transport regulations (Part 3 of Article 263 of the Russian Criminal Code), with pilot error and a technical malfunction being considered as possible causes. Rosaviatsiya has classified the incident as a disaster, and specialists from the agency and the Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC) will participate in the investigation.