Helicopter Crash In New York City’s Hudson River Kills Six People

All six persons on board were killed when a helicopter broke apart in midair and plummeted upside-down into the Hudson River between Manhattan and the New Jersey coastline, according to witnesses and officials.

The crash was reported to the New York Fire Department around 3:17 p.m. According to an unnamed law enforcement officer who spoke to The Associated Press, all six passengers were killed in the crash.

Bruce Wall, a witness, claimed to have seen the helicopter “fall apart” in midair, with the propeller and tail breaking off. As it dropped, he added, the propeller continued to spin without the aircraft.

Before the helicopter crashed into the water, Lesly Camacho, another eyewitness, who works at a restaurant along the river in Hoboken, New Jersey, claimed to have witnessed it spin wildly.

“There was a bunch of smoke coming out. It was spinning pretty fast, and it landed in the water really hard,” she said.

Social media videos showed the overturned aircraft submerged and portions of the chopper plunging into the ocean.

There were several rescue boats circling the plane in the Hudson River. The helicopter was identified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as a Bell 206. Investigations will be carried out by the National Transportation Safety Board and the FAA.

The rescue craft was located close to the end of a lengthy maintenance pier for a ventilation tower that supplies air to the Holland Tunnel. Emergency vehicles, including fire trucks, were visible on nearby streets, their lights blazing.

Both private leisure aircraft and commercial and tourist flights frequently fill the skies over Manhattan, as do helicopters. Business leaders and others can travel throughout the metropolitan region on Manhattan’s several helipads.