Investigators say they’re taking a look into studies a big flock of birds used to be observed earlier than a dangerous helicopter crash in New York Town.
The helicopter’s pilot and a circle of relatives of 5 Spanish vacationers, together with 3 kids, had been killed within the crash within the Hudson river at round 3.17pm on Thursday.
Agustin Escobar, a Siemens government, and his spouse Merce Camprubi Montal, from Spain, had booked the helicopter excursion to have a good time their eight-year-old kid’s upcoming birthday.
Officers have named the pilot as Seankese Johnson. He used to be 36, in step with the Jersey Town Mayor’s place of job.
Giving an replace at the investigation into the crash, Nationwide Transportation Protection Board chair Jennifer Homendy mentioned no preliminary motive were decided.
Requested about studies a big flock of birds used to be observed within the space in a while earlier than the crash, she mentioned: “We’re acutely aware of the ones studies, we mentioned it this morning.
“It is one thing we’re taking a look into. What I might say to the general public is if one thing struck you as other or made you pause, or it crossed your thoughts that you could wish to percentage with our investigators, there’s no problem in sharing that knowledge with us.”
Symbol: The helicopter used to be submerged the other way up within the Hudson. Pic: Reuters 
Symbol: Investigators started analyzing the wreckage of the helicopter on Friday. Computer: AP
Ms Homendy mentioned divers are nonetheless improving portions of the helicopter from the Hudson – and printed the pilot had logged greater than 780 hours of flight time.
Previous, New York Police commissioner Jessica Tisch mentioned divers had recovered all the ones on board from the helicopter, which used to be the other way up within the water.
“4 sufferers had been pronounced lifeless on scene and two extra had been got rid of to native space hospitals, the place unfortunately each succumbed to their accidents,” she mentioned.
Who had been the sufferers?
The helicopter pilot used to be Seankese Johnson, referred to as Sean, who had shared footage and movies of his flights with a view of the Big apple skyline within the background on social media. In the summertime of 2023, he introduced that he used to be flying a Blackhawk helicopter to struggle fires for a Montana-based company.
Symbol: Agustin Escobar and Merce Camprubi Montal. Pic: Fb
Passengers Mr Escobar, 49, Ms Camprubi Montal, 39, and their 3 kids, Victor, 4, Mercedes, 8, and Agustin, 10, all died within the crash.
Mr Escobar used to be within the New York space on industry and his circle of relatives flew in to fulfill him for a couple of days, Steven Fulop, mayor of Jersey Town, New Jersey, wrote in a publish on X.
Ms Camprubi Montal labored for Siemens Power, a separate department of Siemens. Her grandfather used to be a former president of Barcelona FC.
In a observation on Instagram, the Jesuits of Sant Ignasi faculty, in Barcelona, mentioned body of workers and scholars were left “deeply shaken and saddened by way of the demise of a circle of relatives from our group”.
There are “no phrases that may absolutely specific the entire emotions that crush us at this second, we lengthen to all participants of our faculty the need to welcome and improve them of their grief”, the observation persisted.
Symbol: Agustin Escobar. Pic: Europa Press/AP
Occasions to honour and take into accout the circle of relatives shall be introduced sooner or later, the varsity mentioned.
Spanish High Minister Pedro Sanchez referred to as the scoop “devastating”.
“An inconceivable tragedy. I percentage the grief of the sufferers’ family members at this heartbreaking time,” he wrote on X.
Rotor blade ‘flew off’
The airplane used to be on a vacationer flight of Big apple, run by way of the New York Helicopter corporate.
In a observation posted on social media, the company mentioned it used to be “profoundly saddened by way of the tragic twist of fate and lack of lifestyles”, and that passenger and staff protection and wellbeing had “at all times been the cornerstone of our operations”.
The observation persisted: “Our speedy focal point is supporting the households and their family members suffering from this tragedy, in addition to absolutely cooperating with the FAA (Federal Aviation Management) and NTSB (Nationwide Transportation Protection Board) investigations.”
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0:55 Witness noticed ‘portions flying off’ helicopter
Witnesses described seeing the principle rotor blade flying off moments earlier than it dropped out of the sky.
Lesly Camacho, a employee at a cafe alongside the river in Hoboken, mentioned she noticed the helicopter spinning uncontrollably earlier than it slammed into the water.
“There used to be a host of smoke popping out. It used to be spinning beautiful rapid, and it landed within the water in reality laborious,” she mentioned.
Any other witness mentioned “the chopper blade flew off”.
“I have no idea what came about to the tail, nevertheless it simply instantly up dropped,” Avi Rakesh instructed Sky’s US spouse, NBC Information.
Video on social media confirmed portions of the Bell 206 helicopter tumbling during the air and touchdown within the river.
Mafalda Carvalho, from Brazil, instructed Sky Information she took the “very same helicopter excursion” right through a travel to New York simply 3 weeks in the past.
Seeing information of the crash, she mentioned she felt “in reality emotional and reflective as a result of in actual fact we by no means know when it can be our flip… I noticed the scoop that an entire circle of relatives had misplaced their lives, it in reality made me prevent and assume”.
She added: “Helicopters generally don’t seem to be the most secure way of delivery, proper? There may be at all times some degree of chance. I revel in, however it is very bad. We by no means know when one thing would possibly move fallacious.”
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1:59 New York mayor confirms six lifeless
The crash came about as regards to Pier 40 and the Holland tunnel, which hyperlinks decrease Big apple’s Tribeca neighbourhood with Jersey Town to its west.
Monitoring provider Flight Radar 24 revealed what it mentioned used to be the helicopter’s path, with the airplane showing to be within the sky for quarter-hour earlier than the crash.
Thursday’s incident comes lower than 3 months after 67 other people died when a military helicopter and American Airways jet collided over the Potomac River in Washington DC.
