The helicopter spiraled out of control shortly after taking off on Saturday.GETTY IMAGES
Premier League side Leicester City Owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, a Thai tycoon, was among five people on board a helicopter that "crashed and then exploded" after the club's match against West Ham on Saturday, according to Bloomfield & Fraser of REUTERS. Also on board were two pilots and one other person whose identity were not immediately known, a source said on Sunday. The source also named a fifth person on board. Leicester police said that inquiries into the crash "would continue." Srivaddhanaprabha, the founder of duty-free company King Power Int'l, is a "huge favorite with the club's fans" after he bought the "unfancied" side from central England in '10 before it "went on to stun" the football world by beating 5,000:1 odds to win the Premier League title in '16. In Thailand, officials at King Power said that they could not yet comment on the crash. The helicopter came down "yards from the King Power Stadium's grandstands in a club car park." Team Manager Claude Puel was not on the helicopter, the source said. According to witnesses, the helicopter "had barely cleared the top of the stadium before it started to spin." It then "plummeted to the ground and burst into flames." Hundreds of fans laid flowers, football shirts and scarves outside the stadium in tribute to Srivaddhanaprabha on Sunday morning. Fan Richard Mobbs said, "He's put so much money into the club. He has brought the club up from receivership, put the money in, built the team, won the Premiership. The future is looking bright or at least it was looking bright." According to Forbes, Srivaddhanaprabha is the fifth-richest person in Thailand, with an estimated net worth of $4.9B. His family's empire also includes Belgian football club Oud-Heverlee Leuven. Leading Leicester players, including Jamie Vardy and Harry Maguire, sent messages of support on Twitter, while rival clubs including Man City "voiced their concern" (REUTERS, 10/28). REUTERS' Paul Sandle reported Leicester police said in a statement, "Leicestershire Police, East Midlands Ambulance Service and Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service all responded to the incident last night and enquiries continue at the scene today, led by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch. As soon as we are able to confirm any further details around the incident, we will do so" (REUTERS, 10/28). In London, Mark Critchley reported East Midlands Ambulance Service said that the alarm was raised at 8:38pm and it sent a doctor, ambulance and team of paramedics alongside a hazardous area response team to the car park outside the stadium (INDEPENDENT, 10/28).
'A MAN OF KINDNESS': Leicester City said in a statement, "It is with the deepest regret and a collective broken heart that we confirm our Chairman, Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, was among those to have tragically lost their lives on Saturday evening when a helicopter carrying him and four other people crashed outside King Power Stadium. None of the five people on-board survived. ... Supporters unable to visit King Power Stadium that wish to leave a message can do so through an online book of condolence, which will be made available via lcfc.com in due course. Both Tuesday's First Team fixture against Southampton in the EFL Cup and the Development Squad fixture against Feyenoord in the Premier League International Cup have been postponed."
'TERRIBLY SAD': In London, Steinberg & Dodd reported it is "unclear whether the helicopter landed on any objects or if any bystanders were injured by the crash." The areas around the stadium "had largely emptied after the game." West Ham's squad was already on its way back to London at the time. Leicester canceled training for Sunday. Players in Premier League matches on Sunday wore black armbands "as a mark of respect." Puel said, "It's a tragedy for the club. I think very strongly about the victims and their families ... I'm terribly sad." Former England and Leicester Manager Sven-Goran Eriksson said, "It's frightening news ... I still hope it's not true. I knew the whole family and the father. When you know him, as I did, you knew he's a very, very generous man -- to the players, the staff and people working for him -- with the fans and the community. He's an extremely generous man." Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha, Leicester's vice-chair and Vichai's son, was not at the game (GUARDIAN, 10/28). In London, Percy, Wright, Hodges & Tweedale reported Leicester players and staff, including goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, former Leicester and England goalkeeper Peter Shilton and "distressed supporters" were seen in tears "as the fire raged near the car park." It is understood that it took "more than 20 minutes for the flames to be extinguished" before emergency services were able to survey the wreckage. There were unconfirmed reports the accident was "a result of a mechanical failure." Sunday's Women's Championship match between Leicester and ManU at the ground was "called off" following the crash, while the ladies reserve league match against Derby was also postponed. Season-ticket holder Roger Clarke said, "It's not just through football his [Srivaddhanaprabha's] links with the city, they are through his charity work. That's what football does, it brings people together" (TELEGRAPH, 10/28).
'DARKEST DAY': The BBC reported football commentator Ian Stringer said, "This is a very close football club, a tightly knit group of people. People love this guy -- they pulled off the greatest sports story ever at this stadium and lifted the Premier League trophy. The chairman looked at me today on his way to the executive box and said, 'Hello and good afternoon.' I said, 'Good luck.' He said: 'Thank you'" (BBC, 10/28). In London, Bayliss, Draper, Whitwell, Kandohla, O'Brien & Stickings wrote early reports said that Srivaddhanaprabha's daughter was on board with him at the time, although sources at Leicester City have since denied that. The BBC reported that a family source said that the owner was on board. Fans who gathered at the ground on Sunday morning branded it Leicester's "darkest day." On Sunday, there was a minute's applause held at Crystal Palace "in solidarity with Leicester" and a minute's silence at Burnley, "even with fans still in the dark over the outcome of the crash." The pilot was "hailed as a hero" after daylight revealed the helicopter had fallen on a "derelict car park" rather than nearby trees, cars or part of the stadium. A Sky Sports News cameraperson said, "I don't know how the pilot did it but he seemed to manage to slow down the spinning rotation and it drifted off into the corner part of the car park. To my mind, the pilot was heroic and the two police offers in front of me, who also tried to help, they are heroes too." Leicester Director of Football John Rudkin was reportedly safe. The sound of the helicopter crash could be heard on a BT Sport post-match broadcast (DAILY MAIL, 10/28).
QUIRK OF FATE: In London, Steve Madeley reported throughout the "most glorious period" in Leicester City's history, Aiyawatt "Top" Srivaddhanaprabha has been "the public face of the family behind the club's success." While his father, Vichai, was the "ultimate decision-maker," Aiyawatt was "the figure front and centre of Leicester's Thai revolution." A "quirk of fate" meant Top was "at home in Thailand when tragedy sent his father's helicopter spinning to the ground." Usually, he would have been "at his father's side" (SUNDAY TIMES, 10/28).
GREAT AFFECTION: In London, Jonathan Northcroft reported Sunday Times photographer Peter Tarry said, "It was strange how the crash looked so neatly contained in a corner of the car park. I assume that was through luck. Another 200 yards and it would have crashed on the railway tracks or the car park where I was." For a club owner, Srivaddhanaprabha is "unusually close to, and held in great affection by, the players -- especially Leicester's longest-serving squad members" such as Schmeichel and Wes Morgan. He is "loved for his personal touch and generosity" toward them (SUNDAY TIMES, 10/28).
#ForLeicesterCity: A number of prominent figures in the int'l football community shared their reactions to the tragedy on Twitter.
