5 dead as helicopter plunges into NY river
NEW YORK — A helicopter crashed into New York’s East River on Sunday night and flipped upside down in the water, killing all five passengers aboard, police confirmed.
Lieutenant Thomas Antonetti of the New York Police Department confirmed the deaths on Monday morning.
At a news conference on Sunday, New York Fire Department Commissioner Daniel Nigro said the five passengers became trapped in the overturned helicopter and had to be rescued from frigid waters by divers.
Three of them were taken to area hospitals in critical condition, while the other two were pronounced dead at the scene, he said.
The pilot of the helicopter, who managed to escape, was the only survivor.
“One of the most difficult parts of the rescue was that five people were tightly harA nessed,” Nigro said. had to be cut out.
“The pilot freed himself — the other five did not.”
The helicopter is owned by Liberty Helicopter Tours and was hired for a private photoshoot, “People New York Police Department Commissioner James O’Neill said at the news conference with Nigro.
The US National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the crash.
video posted on Twitter shows a red helicopter landing hard on the river and then flipping on its side as its rotors beat the water.
Witnesses said the chopper appeared to quickly fill with water. Mary Lee, 66, told the New York Post she witnessed the crash from her apartment window.
“It’s cold water. It was sinking really fast,” Lee said. “By the time we got out here, we couldn’t see it. It was under water.”
The temperature of the East River was around 4 C.
The helicopter reported an engine failure during a mayday call to air traffic control, according to audio posted to liveatc.net. The audio revealed that the helicopter was upside down in the water as rescue boats arrived at the scene.