Los Angeles news helicopter crashes while covering fatal bus accident
At least three people were killed after a news helicopter crashed in a Los Angeles neighbourhood on Tuesday evening and caught fire while covering an earlier road accident, officials said. The helicopter went down near the scene where an SUV had slammed into a city bus in a separate crash that left at least two people dead and six others injured.
The helicopter crashed around 7 pm near a one-storey commercial building in Chatsworth in the San Fernando Valley, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. An NBC4 Los Angeles anchor confirmed during a live broadcast that the station's helicopter had gone down shortly before 7 pm.
Capt. Branden Silverman, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles Fire Department, said during a news conference that at least one of those killed in the helicopter crash was outside in the parking lot next to the commercial building. It was not immediately clear whether the other two people who died were on the ground or inside the aircraft.
One person was taken to hospital, but there was no immediate word on their condition. "We're trying to determine how many patients were inside the helicopter," Silverman said. He described the helicopter as "pretty well destroyed" and said officials would sort through the rubble to determine how many victims had been on board.
Officials said at least four cars and two storage containers on the ground caught fire after the helicopter crashed. The blaze was quickly put out. The fire department said more than 50 firefighters responded to the helicopter crash.
About two hours before the helicopter went down, an SUV had slammed into the middle of a city bus, killing at least two people and injuring six others. Photos and videos posted online showed half of the SUV lodged into the side of an MTA bus. The helicopter crashed about one-and-a-half miles from the bus accident site.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration said they would investigate the cause of the helicopter crash. The two incidents unfolded within hours of each other, with the helicopter going down while news crews were covering the fatal bus crash.
