Washington  - One man was rescued and 16 people were missing after a helicopter crashed into the Atlantic Ocean Thursday while taking workers to an oil platform off Canada's east coast, Canadian news reports said.

Searchers recovered the body of the 18th person who was on board the helicopter, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation news service reported.

The helicopter departed from Saint John's, the capital of Newfoundland and Labrador, Thursday morning on its way to the Hibernia oil platform when it crashed in the cold waters, said Jeri Grychowski, spokeswoman for the Joint Rescue and Coordination Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

The wreckage site is about 87 kilometres southeast of Saint John's, Grychowski said.

Two planes, two helicopters and a surface ship were involved in ongoing rescue operations, Grychowski said.

Two life-rafts found near where the helicopter crashed were found empty, CBC reported.

The survivor, Robert Decker, was reportedly in critical condition in a St John's hospital, where he was being treated for hypothermia and broken bones. He had breathed in sea water, CBC reported. (dpa)