A tourist helicopter crashed and plummeted into the Hudson River in New York City, killing all six people on board: the pilot and a family of five including three children. The crash happened on Thursday (April 10) afternoon.
The helicopter was carrying a family of five
The helicopter was carrying a family of five from Spain when it split in half mid-air and plummeted into the Hudson River in New York City at around 3:17pm local time on Thursday April 10, according to ABC News.
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CBS News also said a fleet of emergency service vehicles quickly surrounded both sides of the Hudson River to handle the situation.
Eyewitnesses said it split in half
Eyewitnesses noted the crash, telling news outlets about the horrifying moment they saw the helicopter drop into the river.
One eyewitness told ABC News she saw the helicopter “fall out of the sky” from her apartment window.
It sounded like gunshots to her
The eyewitness added that the sound of the split and crash sounded to her like gunshots, saying, “I heard five or six loud noises that sounded almost like gunshots in the sky and saw pieces fall off, then watched it fall into the river.”
Another person was in the street when it happened
Another eyewitness had been walking when they saw the helicopter drop into the river. He told the publication, “I was walking by and the helicopter went down at a 45-degree angle.” He added that it was “very scary.”
He claimed he saw the helicopter split
“It sounded like a sonic boom. I look up, and literally I just see a helicopter splitting in two with the rotor flying off in the sky,” the eyewitness said.
“It was going so fast, it just went straight into the water. I’ve never seen anything like that in my life,” he added.
It sounded like thunder to another witness
Another onlooker told CBS that the crash sounded like thunder, saying, “I saw, like, black particles flying.”
“Again, I thought maybe it’s just like, dust, or birds, and then we heard all the emergency vehicles and sirens go by, and I think that’s when it was like, OK, what’s happening,” she added.
The President wrote a message about the crash
US President Donald Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, “God bless the families and friends of the victims.” He added that the crash was terrible and that more details on it would be released soon.
The investigation is ongoing
According to the BBC, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said the two-bladed helicopter was a Bell 206 and that the investigation into the split and crash will be led by the National Transportation Safety Board.
