Image source, EVN

A witness to the helicopter crash has told of how he and others gave sweets to children at the kindergarten to help calm them down.

Hlib, 17, said he wrote down the children's names and asked if they were hurt.

The children he looked after had minor injuries - but we know others were killed and many sent to hospital.

Image source, EPA

We're hearing more details about what happened this morning.

Iuliia Mendel, a journalist and former adviser to President Zelensky, said several reasons for the crash were being considered by investigators - including equipment malfunction, pilot error, and sabotage.

It was quite early in the morning - before 8:30am - but some children had already entered the kindergarten when the helicopter slammed into the area.

Those at the kindergarten tried to find safety in a bomb shelter but were unable to get there in time, she said.

At least 16 people were killed - including those in the helicopter - and dozens of people have been taken to hospital with injuries.

Rishi Sunak has responded to the helicopter crash in Ukraine this morning, saying his thoughts are with all those affected.

"Ukrainians will continue to be collateral as long as Putin continues his needless war," said the prime minister.

Vitaliy Shevchenko
BBC Monitoring

The officials on this helicopter were en route to the eastern city of Kharkiv when the helicopter crashed east of Kyiv, the head of police in Kharkiv has said.

In a Facebook post, external, Volodymyr Tymoshko said: "Today, I was to meet them and shake their hands… I was to see not just leaders, no, friends who I respected and who I was looking forward to seeing.

"Yesterday and today, I spoke to all those on board - after speaking to them I left to meet them.

"Words fail me, I cannot believe this!"

Image source, .

Sixteen people have died following today's helicopter crash in Brovary, not 18, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the deputy head of the presidential office has said.

Correcting his earlier statement, Tymoshenko says rescue operations are continuing, and 30 people are in hospital, including 12 children.

As emergency services continue to clear the rubble from the crash, there have been conflicting reports on the number of fatalities.

We'll keep bringing you the latest as soon as we have it.

An emotional eyewitness says she saw a burning helicopter circling her house moments before the crash happened.

"We were walking and heard a noise. It was such a noise.

"At that time, there was a terrible flame, a helicopter was circling above our home. I froze, because everyone was home, it was eight in the morning."

Watch the clip above.

At least 18 people have been killed after a helicopter crashed near a nursery in Brovary, an eastern suburb of Ukraine's capital Kyiv.

If you're just joining us or need a recap, here's what we know so far:

• The senior leadership of Ukraine's interior ministry were among those killed in the crash
• The helicopter came down at 08:20 local time (06:20 GMT)
• Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky, 42, died alongside his first deputy and state secretary
• The officials were on their way to a war "hot spot", an official said
• Monastyrsky is the highest profile Ukrainian casualty since the war began
• The death toll includes three children - another 10 are among 25 people in hospital
• Nine people were on board the helicopter when it crashed - it appears many of those killed were on the ground
• President Volodymyr Zelensky described today as a "black morning" for Ukraine
• Ukrainian PM Denys Shmyhal ordered a special committee be set up to investigate the cause of the crash

Image source, .

Image source, EPA

We're hearing more about the senior official killed in this crash - Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky.

Ukrainian MP for Kharkiv Mariia Mezentseva says she and her colleagues hold great memories of a man she says was a key member of the war effort in Ukraine.

Speaking to BBC News from Davos, Switzerland, she said he was a big man, with "a lot of energy".

"My first feelings when I saw the news It thought that this was fake," she said, "but unfortunately it is true."

Mezentseva continued:

The BBC has been able to verify a video of the crash site to the north-west side of Brovary, a town just outside Kyiv. This site is about 100m from a nursery school.

We’ve matched the location with satellite images of the area. There are two buildings that can be identified - a high rise residential one and a smaller one - as well as a football pitch seen in both the video and satellite images. The footpaths running alongside the pitch also match.

Our team at the scene have sent these pictures of the scene of the crash, showing blackened kindergarten buildings.

As we've been reporting, teachers and pupils were in the facility at the time, and officials have reported three children are among the dead and more are in hospital being treated for injuries.

"May all those whose lives were taken this black morning rest in peace," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said in his first statement on the crash.

In the post published at 10:00 GMT, Zelensky says "as of this minute 15 people died" and the exact number of victims is currently being established. But other government officials told reporters during a media briefing at the site in Brovary that 18 people had died.

Zelensky expressed his condolences to the families and friends of the victims, who he described as patriots.

"Denys, Yevhen, Yuri, the team of the Ministry of Internal Affairs... true patriots of Ukraine. May they rest in peace! May all those whose lives were taken this black morning rest in peace!"

Footage of mangled wreckage at the scene of the helicopter crash in Brovary shows how bad this crash was and the extent of the damage on the ground.

UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman has reacted to the death of her Ukrainian counterpart after this morning's helicopter crash.

She describes Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky as "a leading light" in supporting Ukraine and says she spoke to him in October.

"The UK will always stand with our Ukrainian friends," Braverman says.

The helicopter crash this morning happened in Brovary, on the outskirts of Kyiv.

Brovary is an eastern suburb of the capital, roughly 24km (15 miles) away from the city centre.

The maps below show where the helicopter came down and the areas of Ukraine currently controlled by Russia.

Image source, .

Image source, .

James Waterhouse
Reporting from Brovary

Children were inside the kindergarten when the state emergency helicopter came down on what was a misty morning.

All that’s recognisable of the aircraft is a door panel and one of its rotors which landed on the roof of a car. Next to it are three bodies covered in foil blankets.

Three children are known to be among the 18 dead, along with Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky.

I’d often see him at scenes of devastation like this. He would frequently travel by helicopter at low altitude to stay out of the way of enemy fire.

His death cuts to the heart of the Kyiv government. President Zelensky has called the crash a “terrible tragedy”.

The cause is not yet known. In times of war, many will suspect and blame the enemy. But flying at tree-level also comes with risks.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen has responded to this morning's crash and the deaths of 18 people - including top Ukrainian officials from the interior ministry, as well as at least three children.

"We are mourning with you," the European Commission president says.

Flying at low altitude helps evade missiles - but it's not without riskpublished at 10:06 Greenwich Mean Time 18 January 2023

10:06 GMT 18 January 2023

Chris Partridge
BBC weapons analyst

Helicopters typically fly low to evade enemy surface-to-air missiles (SAMs). Kyiv, for example, is within proximity of Russian S-400 SAM units based in neighbouring Belarus just to the north.

These are highly capable systems which will force aircraft – both helicopters and fixed-wing – to fly at levels that will avoid radar detection.

Flying low also mitigates an aircraft’s risk of attack from other SAMs such as smaller infra-red, shoulder-launched weapons once in contested battlefield space.

But staying low increases the risk of a collision with the ground. This type of flying is intensive and quite stressful for pilots, particularly in an urban environment with numerous structures such as buildings and trees.

We still have no clarity on the reason for this crash, but low flying is not without risks.

Hanna Chornous
Reporting from Brovary

It is too early to discuss the cause of the helicopter crash, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the presidential administration has said during a media briefing in Brovary.

He said an investigation would look into all possibilities and police have asked witnesses to come forward.

He confirmed the helicopter ride was "work-related" for the interior minister, Denys Monastrysky. He's believed to have been on his way to the front line.

Earlier Tymoshenko said the officials on the helicopter were flying to a war "hot spot".

People have been gathering at the scene in Brovary, where at least 18 people died after a helicopter crash.

Brovary is an eastern suburb of Kyiv, roughly 24km (15 miles) away from the capital's city centre.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

We've received more detailed information about the crash from the Ukraine's state emergency service., external

Officials say the helicopter - DSNS ES-225 model - a crashed at 08:20 local time in Brovary (06:20 GMT) and the National Emergency Service building was damaged in the subsequent fire.

Fire crews were able to extinguish the fire just over an hour later.

"There were nine people on board: six members of the operational team of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, including the leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, as well as three members of the crew of the State Emergency Service," a statement says.

It adds that 25 people are known to have been injured including 15 adults and 10 children.