News Helicopter Crash In Los Angeles Kills Three

News Helicopter Crash in Los Angeles Kills Three

A news helicopter crashed in a commercial area of Chatsworth, a suburb of Los Angeles, California, on Tuesday night, killing three people and injuring others, according to local officials.The helicopter was providing aerial coverage of an earlier fatal bus collision when it went down shortly before 7 p.m., bursting into flames near commercial buildings in the San Fernando Valley. The helicopter was operated for NBC4 and Telemundo 52 by Angel City Air. The two people aboard who were killed were identified as veteran pilot George Marciniw and aerial photojournalist and reporter Eliana Moreno. A third person, a pedestrian who was in a nearby parking lot, was also killed. At least two other people were injured and taken to hospital, officials said. NBC4 said it lost contact with its helicopter crew shortly before the crash.The station was covering a separate deadly traffic collision involving an SUV and a Metro bus in Chatsworth when the helicopter went down about a mile away. NBC4 anchor Colleen Williams confirmed the incident on air before the station temporarily switched to other programming. The helicopter crashed between commercial buildings and caught fire, damaging several vehicles and storage containers. More than 70 firefighters responded to the scene and extinguished the blaze, according to officials. The Los Angeles Fire Department said the crash site was secured while emergency crews treated victims and dealt with the fire The helicopter had been covering an earlier crash involving an SUV and a city bus. That collision also resulted in multiple fatalities and injuries, making the helicopter crash a second major tragedy in the same area on Tuesday.Several news helicopters were reportedly in the area covering the original collision when the NBC4 aircraft crashed. The cause of the helicopter crash has not yet been determined. The National Transportation Safety Board NTSB and the Federal Aviation Administration FAA are investigating the incident. Officials have not indicated that any specific mechanical or operational problem caused the crash. NBC4 and Telemundo 52 expressed condolences to the families, friends and colleagues of those killed, while California officials and Los Angeles authorities also paid tribute to the victims. The investigation is expected to examine the aircraft’s condition, flight path, weather and other circumstances surrounding the crash.