Basketball star Bryant dies in chopper crash
BASKETBALL LEGEND BRYANT KILLED IN COPTER CRASH
I love everything about this game. For me, it’s not a part of life, it is life, and it’s a part of me, Kobe Bryant once famously said.
NBA legend Kobe Bryant died on Sunday when a helicopter he was riding in crashed and burst into flames in thick fog, killing all nine people on board including his teenage daughter and plunging legions of fans around the world into mourning.
Bryant, 41, was traveling with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven other passengers and crew when their Sikorsky S-76 helicopter slammed into a rugged hillside in Calabasas, west of Los Angeles. There were no survivors.
When it struck the ground, the helicopter was flying at about 160 knots (184 mph) and descending at a rate of more than 4000 feet per minute, according to data from Flightradar24.
The cause of the crash was unknown, but conditions at the time were such that the Los Angeles Police Department and the county sheriff ’s department grounded their helicopters.
Kurt Deetz, a pilot who used to fly Bryant in the chopper, said the crash was more likely caused by bad weather than engine or mechanical issues.
Dozens of firefighters and paramedics battled across steep terrain to reach the flaming wreckage at the crash site but found no survivors, officials said.
The crash came only hours after Bryant was passed by current Lakers star LeBron James for third on the all-time NBA scoring list in a Saturday game at Philadelphia. Bryant’s final post on social media had been a tweet congratulating James on surpassing him.
The accident unleashed an outpouring of grief from admirers around the world who mourned the sudden loss of the all-time basketball great who spent his entire 20year career with the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Los Angeles County medical examiner, Dr Jonathan Lucas, said the rugged terrain complicated efforts to recover the remains.
He estimated it would take at least a couple of days to complete that task before identifications can be made. —