Umno has cancelled a gathering scheduled for May 14 at Dataran Merdeka to celebrate its 70th anniversary as a mark of respect over the helicopter crash in Sarawak on Thursday.

"Although preparations have been made, we feel the time is not right for such an event as party members are sad over what has happened," Umno secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor said in a statement today.

Deputy Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister and Sungai Besar MP Noriah Kasnon was killed after the Eurocopter AS350 helicopter went down in Batang Lupar on a flight from Betong to Kuching on Thursday.

Five other people were also on board the ill-fated helicopter, namely Noriah's husband Asmuni Abdullah, Kuala Kangsar MP Wan Muhammad Khair-il Anuar Wan Ahmad, Plantation Industries and Commodities Ministry secretary-general Sundaran Annamalai, Noriah's bodyguard Ahmad Sobri Harun, and Filipino pilot Rudolf Rex Ragas.

As at 3pm today, three more bodies had been recovered but had yet to be identified.

Tengku Adnan said an Umno sports carnival and the Umno flag run to be held nationwide had also been cancelled.

However, he said, the Umno anniversary event scheduled for May 11 at the Putra World Trade Centre would be held on a moderate scale with prayers and 'tahlil'.

"Umno expresses condolences to the families of the victims of the tragedy," he said.

- Bernama