The television networks Telemundo and NBC are in mourning following the death of a journalist and a helicopter pilot on Tuesday night in Los Angeles, California, while they were reporting on a fatal car accident.
The NewsChopper 4 from NBC Los Ángeles and Telemundo 52 crashed in the Chatsworth community, in the San Fernando Valley, a tragic event that claimed the lives of three people: the aerial reporter Eliana Moreno, the pilot George Marciniw, and a pedestrian who was on the ground at the time of the impact.
The aircraft, a Eurocopter AS 350 B2 operated by Angel City Air and contracted by NBC4 for news coverage, fell in a parking lot on Mason Avenue just before 7:00 PM and immediately caught fire, spreading flames to nearby parked vehicles.
The chief of the fire battalion, Rico A. Gross, confirmed at a press conference that three people died at the scene and two others were taken to the hospital in unknown condition.
The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Department identified the deceased pedestrian this Wednesday as Edy Gutiérrez Mejía, 29 years old.
The NBC4 presenter Colleen Williams announced the tragedy live with a shaky voice: "We knew it was a news helicopter, we knew we had lost contact with our team there, and we have just received confirmation that, indeed, NewsChopper 4 crashed shortly before 7 PM today in Chatsworth."
NBC Los Ángeles and Telemundo 52 issued a joint statement expressing: "We are deeply saddened to report that a helicopter conducting aerial news coverage for NBC4 and Telemundo 52 suffered a fatal accident in Los Angeles on Tuesday night."
Telemundo 52 dedicated an emotional message on social media to its two deceased colleagues: "Tonight we mourn. Tonight our hearts are broken. We lost two great colleagues."
Eliana Moreno, born in Orange County, graduated in 2010 from Chapman University with degrees in audiovisual journalism and political science, and that same year she joined the Angel City Air team.
He worked for nearly a decade for NBC4 and Telemundo 52, covering everything from police chases to wildfires in both English and Spanish.
Her colleagues described her as "the best reporter from the helicopter in all of Los Angeles, without a doubt." They revealed that in her personal life, she was engaged, had a dog, and dreamed of running a mile despite suffering from asthma.
George Marciniw, who grew up in Southern California and graduated from Burbank High School in 1974, was a highly respected pilot in the industry; at Telemundo, he liked to be called "Jorge."
The helicopter was covering a prior collision between a LA Metro bus and a private vehicle that occurred at 5:02 PM on Nordhoff Street, an accident that had already resulted in at least two deaths and six injuries.
Witness Zareh Sevanesian, who was driving near the site with his wife, reported noticing something unusual about the aircraft moments before the impact: "I saw the helicopter; something didn't seem right. And I told my wife, 'that helicopter is not flying well.'" Sevanesian described the subsequent fire as "one of the most violent" he had ever witnessed.
The mayor of Los Angeles, Karen Bass, made an appearance that same night near the site and described what happened as "a heartbreaking night for our city," noting that "today we have lost five Angelenos," adding together the victims from the bus crash and the plane accident.
California Governor Gavin Newsom also offered his condolences on social media and expressed gratitude for the response of emergency teams.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) confirmed that it is investigating the accident and that its teams arrived at the scene on Wednesday; the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is participating as a support agency. The cause of the incident has not yet been determined.
The accident occurs just a month after another executive from Telemundo died in a helicopter accident in Kenya, making this the second tragic blow for the NBCUniversal family in just a few weeks.
Filed under: