Helicopter crash in New York Thursday afternoon, a helicopter downed in Hudson River in NYC left 6 fatalities. The incident occurred at approximately 3:17 PM ET, when emergency services received reports of a helicopter submerged in the river. This tragic event came only months after the city passed a ban on open-door helicopter flights. The original ban was enacted due to safety concerns following a 2018 crash that killed a pedestrian.
The Hudson River, an essential west Manhattan tidal waterway, served as a backdrop to those desperate rescue attempts. In the wake of this great tragedy, emergency responders are a… Emergency responders quickly rushed to the scene to help. The crash site is adjacent to the end of a very long maintenance pier. Today, this pier serves one of the Holland Tunnel’s ventilation towers, the tunnel being one of the most important road connections, under that same river, between NYC and NJ.
Witnesses stated they saw the helicopter mostly submerged and upside down in the water which further impeded rescue efforts. It seemed like every second vehicle was an ambulance, police, or rescue vehicle rushing to help. First responders sent boats into the water for search and rescue. It was a chaotic environment, as responders battled the clock to evaluate the environment and carry out their active rescue operations.
This helicopter crash is a particularly notable occurrence in a country that has seen more than its share of aviation disasters. In 2009, a tourist helicopter struck a small private plane in the airspace adjacent to the airport. For the airspace around such density, air traffic safety was an ongoing issue even before this particular incident.
The New York City government enacted a ban on open-door helicopter flights following a deadly crash in 2018 that claimed five lives. This most recent crash has, once again, opened up the conversation about how we regulate and govern the safety of helicopter operations in cityscapes.
Though the rescue efforts are still ongoing, investigators will surely be studying the circumstances of this crash carefully in the days ahead. Preliminary reports indicate that the helicopter started having mechanical issues right before going into the East River. More information is expected as NTSB’s investigation continues.