International
oi-Madhuri Adnal
A
tragic
helicopter
crash
in
New
York
City’s
Hudson
River
on
Thursday
claimed
the
lives
of
all
six
people
aboard,
including
three
children.
According
to
Reuters,
the
victims
included
a
Spanish
family
and
the
pilot,
as
confirmed
by
Mayor
Eric
Adams
during
a
press
briefing.
Two
individuals
were
initially
rushed
to
a
hospital
but
later
died
from
their
injuries,
AFP
reported.
While
authorities
have
yet
to
release
the
names
of
the
deceased
officially,
the
New
York
Post
identified
the
passengers
as
Agustín
Escobar
–
President
and
CEO
of
Siemens
in
Spain
–
along
with
his
wife
and
their
three
children.
“All
six
victims
have
been
recovered
from
the
water
and,
tragically,
all
have
been
pronounced
dead,” Mayor
Adams
said,
describing
the
crash
as
“heartbreaking
and
tragic.”
Reacting
to
the
incident,
former
U.S.
President
Donald
Trump
posted
on
Truth
Social,
calling
it
a
“terrible
helicopter
crash
in
the
Hudson
River.”
He
expressed
condolences,
saying,
“Looks
like
six
people
–
the
pilot,
two
adults,
and
three
children
–
are
no
longer
with
us.
The
footage
of
the
accident
is
horrendous.
God
bless
the
families
and
friends
of
the
victims.”
He
added
that
Secretary
of
Transportation
Sean
Duffy
and
his
team
are
investigating
the
incident.
According
to
New
York
Police
Commissioner
Jessica
Tisch,
the
Bell
206
helicopter,
operated
by
New
York
Helicopter
Tours,
took
off
around
3
p.m.
from
a
downtown
helipad.
It
flew
north
over
the
Hudson
River
before
turning
south
near
the
George
Washington
Bridge.
The
chopper
crashed
minutes
later
–
flipping
upside
down
before
submerging
near
Lower
Manhattan
around
3:15
p.m.
Dramatic
videos
posted
on
social
media
showed
a
large
object
plunging
into
the
river,
followed
moments
later
by
what
appeared
to
be
a
helicopter
blade.
Emergency
response
teams
quickly
swarmed
the
area
with
police
and
rescue
boats.
Eyewitness
Bruce
Wall
told
the
Associated
Press
he
saw
the
helicopter
disintegrating
midair.
“The
tail
and
the
propeller
came
off,” he
said,
adding
that
the
propeller
was
still
spinning
independently
as
it
fell.
New
York’s
skyline
and
rivers
often
see
high
helicopter
traffic
from
both
commercial
and
private
tours.
This
latest
crash
adds
to
a
troubling
history
–
including
a
2018
East
River
helicopter
accident
that
killed
five
and
a
2009
midair
collision
over
the
Hudson
that
claimed
nine
lives.
