A local NBC News helicopter crashed in a Los Angeles neighbourhood on Tuesday while covering a nearby bus accident, killing at least three people.
The helicopter went down near a large storage facility in Chatsworth, in the San Fernando Valley, shortly before 7pm, according to officials and the station.
The crash occurred about 1.5 miles from the scene of an earlier collision involving an SUV and a city bus, which killed at least two people and injured six others.
Colleen Williams, an NBC4 Los Angeles anchor, confirmed during a live broadcast that the station’s helicopter had crashed and that two people on board had been killed.
“We are going to take a couple of minutes to think about that, process it,” she said.
The station’s coverage was abruptly cut off moments later.
Los Angeles Fire Department officials said at least one person killed in the helicopter crash was outside the aircraft in a parking lot beside the commercial building.
Two other people were taken to hospital, although their conditions were not immediately known.
“From the helicopter itself, it’s pretty well destroyed,” said Capt. Branden Silverman, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles Fire Department.
“So we are going to have to go through the rubble and see how many victims there were on board, as well as identify the helicopter; we couldn’t even see a tail.”
At least four cars and two storage containers on the ground caught fire after the helicopter crashed. Firefighters quickly put out the flames, with more than 70 firefighters responding to the scene.
NBC confirmed the helicopter was NewsChopper4, operated by Angel City Air and used by NBC4 Los Angeles and Telemundo 52.
The helicopter crashed while several television news crews were covering the earlier bus accident.
About two hours before the helicopter crash, an SUV collided with the middle of a city bus, killing at least two people and injuring six others.
Images and videos from the scene showed part of the SUV lodged inside the side of an MTA bus.
NBC4 and Telemundo 52 Los Angeles said in a statement they “are deeply saddened” by the helicopter crash and extended “heartfelt condolences to the families, friends and colleagues of those who lost their lives.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass also expressed condolences following the two crashes.
“Losing five Angelenos is very painful,” Bass said. “And I know this community of Chatsworth hit hard, will be grieving for some time.”
California Governor Gavin Newsom thanked emergency crews responding to both incidents and said “our hearts are with the victims and families.”
The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration said they would investigate the cause of the helicopter crash, with an investigator expected at the scene on Wednesday.
Federal accident records and news reports indicate that at least eight fatal crashes involving news helicopters have occurred in the United States since 2000, killing 16 people.
They include a 2023 crash in a New Jersey forest that killed a pilot and photographer aboard a helicopter used by Philadelphia station WPVI, and a 2022 crash near a Charlotte, North Carolina, interstate that killed a pilot and meteorologist during a training flight for WBTV.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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