The sister of Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez has died in a helicopter crash along with five other people, Associated Press reported.
The aircraft carrying Hilda Hernandez, four members of her security detail and a pilot took off from Tegucigalpa’s international airport Saturday morning. It was headed for her residence in Comayagua, about 40 miles (60 kilometers) from the capital.
Soon afterward, the air force reported it had gone missing. The wreckage was later discovered in the mountains with no survivors.
President Hernandez changed his Twitter profile picture to a black ribbon of mourning.
The head of his National Party said in a statement: “Be with God, Hilda Hernandez, a tireless fighter for our party.”
Hilda Hernandez was 51. She served as a Cabinet minister under her brother and in the previous government.