Petro offered "a hug of solidarity" for the bereaved families as the country mourns the deceased in the tragedy, according to the president's social media account on X.

Earlier, the Colombian Air Force said that the Huey II helicopter, with registration number FAC-4441, had lost contact while on a medical mission on Sunday morning, reports Xinhua news agency.

Search and rescue operations were immediately launched after the crash.

Local media reported that the victims included several officers and technicians. Preliminary investigations show that bad weather could be the primary cause of the crash.