Officials said that six people were killed when a helicopter crashed into the Hudson River near Manhattan on Thursday.
The fire department reported that it had received a report at 3:17 pm EDT of a helicopter floating in the water. Officials confirmed that all six victims were dead.
Social media videos showed the Bell 206 largely submerged and upside down in the water. Rescue boats circled the aircraft.
The rescue craft was near the end of a long maintenance dock for a ventilation system serving the Holland Tunnel. Near the scene, emergency vehicles and fire trucks were flashing their lights.
Manhattan’s skies are regularly filled with private aircraft, commercial flights, and tourist flights. Manhattan is home to several helipads where business executives can fly to various destinations in the metropolitan area.
In the past, there have also been several crashes. These include a 2009 collision between a plane, a tourist helicopter, and the Hudson River that resulted in the deaths of nine people and a 2018 crash involving a charter helicopter that offered “open-door” flights and that crashed into the East River and killed five people.
