A Russian helicopter with eight people on board crashed into the sea near Norway’s Svalbard archipelago on Thursday. The Norwegian Rescue Service said the chopper went down some two to three km off the coast of the Arctic port of Barentsburg, according to reports.

Officials said the helicopter was carrying three passengers and a crew of five, The Independent reported.

“There is bad visibility. No wind, but a lot of waves,” Tore Hongset, who is leading the rescue coordination operation, was quoted as saying by Reuters. “We are physically looking for the helicopter.”

The chopper was headed to Barentsburg, a coal mining port, from Pyramiden, an abandoned Russian settlement.