News Helicopter Crashes in Los Angeles, Killing at Least Three
A TV news helicopter crashed and caught fire in Los Angeles' Chatsworth neighborhood, killing at least three people, including two aboard.
A television news helicopter operating for NBC and Telemundo crashed in a Los Angeles neighborhood and burst into flames on Tuesday, killing at least three people, officials and the news outlet said.
The aircraft went down near a large storage facility in Chatsworth, in the San Fernando Valley, while news crews were covering a separate collision involving an SUV and a city bus. That earlier crash killed at least two people and injured six others.
Colleen Williams, an anchor for NBC4 Los Angeles, confirmed during live broadcasts that two people aboard the chopper were killed. A spokesperson for the Los Angeles Fire Department said at least one other person died on the ground.
Officials said the helicopter caught fire after impact, burning at least four cars and two storage containers on the ground. The blaze was quickly extinguished.
Two people were taken to a hospital, according to Rico A. Gross, a fire department battalion chief. Their conditions were not immediately released.
No immediate details were available on what caused the helicopter to crash. In the final video the crew broadcast live before the crash, an alarm could be heard sounding inside the cockpit as the aircraft lost altitude.
Morning scenes from the site showed Los Angeles police and fire department vehicles arriving and departing, a fire truck parked at the scene, and a woman leaving flowers outside the crash site.