Ten years after the aviation accident in Cantemir district, when a SMURD helicopter from Iasi crashed during a medical mission, authorities from both banks of the Prut organized a ceremony to commemorate the four crew members who died, IPN reports.

The event took place on Tuesday in the village of Haragas, where the aircraft crashed in 2016, in rainy and foggy conditions, while heading to Cahul to pick up a patient. The ceremony began with a religious service, followed by a moment of silence and speeches by officials. At the end, flowers were laid at the Memorial erected in honour of the SMURD crew members.

“We preserve the memory of mission colleagues who left behind respect, gratitude and an example of courage. Today we are together to honour their names and to carry forward the duty they served,” said Interior Minister Daniella Misail-Nichitin.

On the day of the accident, the SMURD helicopter had already transported a patient from Vulcanesti to Chisinau. On its return, the aircraft, carrying a pilot, a co-pilot, a doctor and a paramedic, crashed in the forest near Haragas. All four crew members died.

The victims of the aviation accident — pilot Ilie Doru Gavril, co-pilot Constantin Voicu Socae, doctor Mihaela Dumea and paramedic Adrian-Gabriel Sandu — were later decorated posthumously by the presidents of Romania and the Republic of Moldova and declared honorary citizens of Iasi municipality.