This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/10/nyregion/helicopter-crash-nyc.html

The article has changed 13 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
Helicopter Crashes on Roof of Manhattan Building, Killing Pilot Helicopter Crash: Pilot Dies in ‘Hard’ Rooftop Landing in Manhattan
(32 minutes later)
[What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.][What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.]
A helicopter crashed onto the rooftop of a 51-story building in Midtown Manhattan on Monday afternoon and burst into flames. For hours on Monday, fog had surrounded the skyscrapers in Midtown Manhattan, hiding the upper floors. Suddenly, there was a jolt and a noise that some compared to an explosion. A helicopter had crashed onto the roof of a 51-story office building and burst into flames.
Only one person was aboard the aircraft when it crashed on the roof of 787 Seventh Avenue at 51st Street at 1:43 p.m, city officials said. That person was reported to have been killed, according to two city officials. Only one person was aboard the aircraft when it hit the roof of the building, at 787 Seventh Avenue at 51st Street, about 1:45 p.m., according to the Federal Aviation Administration. That person was reported to have been killed, according to two city officials.
A police official characterized the incident as a “hard landing.’’ A police official characterized the incident as a “hard landing.’’ But it was not immediately clear what caused the helicopter, an Agusta A109E, to crash blocks from heliports along the Hudson River and the East River.
The Fire Department said it was deploying over 100 emergency workers to the scene. The crash involving an aircraft and a skyscraper closed off streets, prompted building evacuations and unnerved New Yorkers who wondered if it had been an accident or something deliberate.
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who was at the scene, said there was no indication of terrorism. He said the helicopter seemed to have made an emergency landing. But Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who was quickly at the scene, said there was no indication of terrorism. He said the helicopter seemed to have made an emergency landing.
Mr. Cuomo acknowledged that the initial reports of the accident unsettled New Yorkers. “If you’re a New Yorker, you have a level of P.T.S.D., right, from 9/11,’’ Mr. Cuomo said. “I remember that morning all too well.” Mr. Cuomo acknowledged that the initial reports of the accident unsettled people. “If you’re a New Yorker, you have a level of PTSD, right, from 9/11,’’ Mr. Cuomo said. “I remember that morning all too well.”
There were several reports of a helicopter flying erratically near the East River not long before the crash, which was being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board.
Wendy Slater, 46, was walking her pit bull Ewing on the East River near 20th Street when she heard the sound of a low-flying helicopter coming from behind.
“It was flying really low, going up and diving down, flying sideways,” she said. “I just thought he was going to crash right there in the river, but then he went north.”
Still, the memory of the Sept. 11 attacks flashed through the minds of people in Le Bernardin, the three-star Michelin restaurant at the bottom of the building. The lunchtime crowd, eating lobster and drinking Champagne, was jolted by the noise.
“It goes through everyone’s mind,” said Jenaro Mendoza, a waiter, recalling the Sept. 11 attacks. Added a colleague, Antony Cordero, “You never know what it is, if it’s terrorism.”
At table after table, cellphones started flashing alerts about a plane crash. Before long the chef, Eric Ripert, emerged from the kitchen and asked everyone to evacuate.
Andrew Heath, 37, was working on the fifth floor of the building where the helicopter crashed.Andrew Heath, 37, was working on the fifth floor of the building where the helicopter crashed.
“We heard an explosion — it sounded like a manhole cover had exploded,’’ he said. “I heard and felt it. It was like a thud. I was wondering if a really heavy truck was driving by, but it was a little too much.’’“We heard an explosion — it sounded like a manhole cover had exploded,’’ he said. “I heard and felt it. It was like a thud. I was wondering if a really heavy truck was driving by, but it was a little too much.’’
Another worker on the seventh floor said it “felt like a small earthquake.’’Another worker on the seventh floor said it “felt like a small earthquake.’’
The site of the accident, the AXA Equitable Center, is an office tower that is more than 750-feet tall. It was built in 1985.The site of the accident, the AXA Equitable Center, is an office tower that is more than 750-feet tall. It was built in 1985.
The building houses a number of law firms, including Sidley Austin and Willkie Farr & Gallagher, and some operations of several financial services firms, including BNP Paribas, UBS and Citibank, as well as an office of CalPERS, the California Public Employees’ Retirement System.
Melvin Douglas, 50, said he was selling umbrellas on Seventh Avenue near 51st Street when he heard a loud boom. He said that he and others on the street did not know a helicopter had crashed, and that they only realized something was wrong when people started streaming out of the tower.Melvin Douglas, 50, said he was selling umbrellas on Seventh Avenue near 51st Street when he heard a loud boom. He said that he and others on the street did not know a helicopter had crashed, and that they only realized something was wrong when people started streaming out of the tower.
“Nobody knew what was really going on,” Mr. Douglas said. “We couldn’t see anything because it was so cloudy.”“Nobody knew what was really going on,” Mr. Douglas said. “We couldn’t see anything because it was so cloudy.”
Diners at the famed three-star restaurant in the building, Le Bernardin, were evacuated after the crash.
Anthony Cordero, one of the waiters, said he heard the sound of something crashing — “something unusual, I thought maybe some machinery working on the street.”
Phones started flashing alerts. “As soon as people looked at their phones and saw that it was a plane, they rushed out of the building,” said Jenaro Mendoza, another waiter.
The Bernardin chef, Eric Ripert, came out of the kitchen and asked everyone to evacuate.
“You never know what it is — if it’s terrorism,” Mr. Cordero said.
Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura, Michael Gold, Patrick McGeehan, William K. Rashbaum, Ashley Southall and Ali Watkins contributed reporting.Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura, Michael Gold, Patrick McGeehan, William K. Rashbaum, Ashley Southall and Ali Watkins contributed reporting.