MOSCOW, August 12. /TASS/. The reason for the helicopter crash in Kamchatka was crew error, according to preliminary data, a law enforcement source told TASS on Thursday.

"The pilot error version has come to the fore now. Amidst thick fog, when the helicopter was descending, the crew could not understand where it was landing and mistakenly ended up on the surface of the water, where the helicopter sank within seconds. Those who were able to find their bearings instantly and rise from a depth of one meter to 10 meters survived," the source said.

He added that, according to preliminary data, no technical failures had been recorded.

Meanwhile, a source in the emergency service told TASS that Russian journalist and economist Nikolai Korzhenevsky, a news anchor of the Rossiya 24 TV channel, was one of those who survived the helicopter crash. "Journalist Nikolai Korzenevsky was on board the Mi-8 [helicopter], which made a hard landing. He survived and was rescued," the source said.

A total of eight people, including two crew members, were rescued. The helicopter commander and seven passengers, including one child, were killed.

A Mi-8 helicopter carrying 16 people, including 13 passengers, crashed into Kuril Lake in the Kronotsky Nature Reserve in Kamchatka. Medical workers and rescuers are working at the scene. A criminal case has been initiated into the crash. Eight survivors were airlifted to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.