A family of five, including three children, were killed in a helicopter crash that happened on Thursday, April 10, at around 3:17 pm, with the aircraft breaking apart in midair and plunging into the Hudson River.
Before it hit the water, the helicopter spined uncontrollably, according to witnesses.
Dani Horbiak, a witness, told ABC News she heard what “sounded almost like gunshots in the sky.” She then noticed parts of metal falling down from the sky.
Radar data showed the helicopter circling near the Statue of Liberty, flying north along the Manhattan skyline to the George Washington Bridge and then back south before the crash after being in the sky for approximately 18 minutes.
According to The Telegraph, the owner of New York Helicopter which provided the tour and the chopper, Michael Roth, said the helicopter needed fuel.
“He [the pilot] called in that he was landing and that he needed fuel, and it should have taken him about three minutes to arrive, but 20 minutes later, he didn’t arrive.”
It was another pilot who noticed the helicopter into the Hudson River and alerted Roth.
“We’re all devastated. Every employee in our company is devastated. My wife has not stopped crying.
“The death of the child, of any human being, is a monumental disaster.”
The passengers losing their lives were Spanish tourists who were identified as Agustín Escobar, the CEO of Rail Infrastructure at Siemens Mobility, his wife Merce Camprubi Montal, and their three children. The pilot, 36, also lost his life.
The family posed in front and inside the helicopter before the deadly flight.
Following the crash, emergency services arrived at the scene and all of the bodies were recovered.
“Recovery operations have been secured for the night. Major parts of the aircraft have not been recovered so dive operations by the NYPD and NJSP will resume tomorrow morning,” Jersey City Mayor Steven said in a post.
President Trump shared his condolences about the lives lost in the helicopter crash over Hudson River. He wrote the investigation is ongoing and there would be answers.
Please SHARE this article with your family and friends on Facebook.
Bored Daddy
Love and Peace