A sightseeing helicopter plunged into the Hudson River on Thursday, turning a family outing above Manhattan’s misty skyline into a tragedy.
The helicopter was a little bit like nose down, slightly, and I saw the propeller separating from the helicopter. It kept spinning in the air alone. Nothing was attached to it,” Sarah Jane Raymond Ryer, who saw the crash unfold, told CNN affiliate WCBS.
A video obtained by CNN shows the rotor blades detached from the helicopter and flying through the air. “The videotape in this case is very dramatic and very important to the investigation,” former National Transportation Safety Board managing director Peter Goelz told CNN on Friday.
Eyewitness Avi Rakesh told CNN’s Jessica Dean that what was left of the helicopter appeared to be so out of control, he didn’t feel safe in his own building.
“Debris was flying everywhere. I was concerned that something might come and hit the window,” Rakesh said.
Here’s what we know about the crash that killed everyone on board:
A Siemens family and pilot among the victims
The victims include Agustín Escobar, 49, his wife, Mercè Camprubí Montal, and their three children – two sons, ages 4, and 11, along with a daughter who was to turn 9 today. New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the family was visiting from Spain, and Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop said in a social media post that the family was in New York to celebrate Camprubí’s 40th birthday.
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic helicopter crash in which Agustin Escobar and his family lost their lives. Our heartfelt condolences go out to all their loved ones,” a Siemens Mobility spokesperson said in a statement to CNN.
Escobar served as CEO of Rail Infrastructure at Siemens Mobility, the transportation solutions division of Siemens AG.
Spain’s Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, expressed his condolences, calling the incident “an unimaginable tragedy.”
Camprubí was the global commercialization manager for Siemens Energy, according to her LinkedIn page. Siemens Energy is an independent company that was spun off from Siemens AG in 2020.
The helicopter carried six people, including three children and their parents – who have both worked for Siemens, a German multinational technology conglomerate. It lifted off from a Manhattan heliport and followed a familiar route: circling the Statue of Liberty, gliding north along the Hudson toward the George Washington Bridge and then turning south. About 16 minutes after takeoff, the aircraft crashed into the water, according to analysis by CNN and FlightRadar24.
Witnesses described the helicopter flipping and spiraling before crashing near the New Jersey shoreline upside down, scattering debris across the river.
The helicopter was a little bit like nose down, slightly, and I saw the propeller separating from the helicopter. It kept spinning in the air alone. Nothing was attached to it,” Sarah Jane Raymond Ryer, who saw the crash unfold, told CNN affiliate WCBS.
A video obtained by CNN shows the rotor blades detached from the helicopter and flying through the air. “The videotape in this case is very dramatic and very important to the investigation,” former National Transportation Safety Board managing director Peter Goelz told CNN on Friday.
Eyewitness Avi Rakesh told CNN’s Jessica Dean that what was left of the helicopter appeared to be so out of control, he didn’t feel safe in his own building.
“Debris was flying everywhere. I was concerned that something might come and hit the window,” Rakesh said.
Here’s what we know about the crash that killed everyone on board:
A Siemens family and pilot among the victims
The victims include Agustín Escobar, 49, his wife, Mercè Camprubí Montal, and their three children – two sons, ages 4, and 11, along with a daughter who was to turn 9 today. New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the family was visiting from Spain, and Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop said in a social media post that the family was in New York to celebrate Camprubí’s 40th birthday.
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic helicopter crash in which Agustin Escobar and his family lost their lives. Our heartfelt condolences go out to all their loved ones,” a Siemens Mobility spokesperson said in a statement to CNN.
Escobar served as CEO of Rail Infrastructure at Siemens Mobility, the transportation solutions division of Siemens AG.
Spain’s Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, expressed his condolences, calling the incident “an unimaginable tragedy.”
Camprubí was the global commercialization manager for Siemens Energy, according to her LinkedIn page. Siemens Energy is an independent company that was spun off from Siemens AG in 2020.
