(Reuters) - At least three people were killed on Monday in the crash of a helicopter carrying a group of recreational skiers on an outing in British Columbia, the tour operator said in a statement.

       The chopper went down near Terrace, a town of about 12,000 residents in the Skeena region of west-central British Columbia about 70 miles (112 km) east of the Alaska border, according to Northern Escape Heli-Skiing.

       The British Columbia Emergency Health Services reported separately that four people injured in the crash and treated by paramedics at the scene were taken to Mills Memorial Hospital in Terrace in critical condition.

       It was left unclear whether any of those initially hospitalized were among the victims later listed as deceased by the tour operator, whose website promotes trips featuring "big mountain, backcountry skiing at its finest."

       A spokesperson for the company, Tamara Little, said she did not know how many passengers and crew were aboard the chopper when it went down and whether anyone was missing after the crash.

       There was no official word on the cause or circumstances surrounding the crash, which occurred at about 4 p.m. local time.

       (Reporting by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; Editing by Michael Perry)

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