Sept. 15, 2026Up to date Sept. 16, 2026, 2:02 a.m. ET
Three individuals had been killed and a fourth was hospitalized after a tv information helicopter crashed and burst into flames Tuesday night in Chatsworth, in response to authorities and NBC Los Angeles.
The helicopter went down at about 6:57 p.m. close to 9151 N. Mason Ave., between two business buildings within the west San Fernando Valley. The crash sparked a big emergency response, with 56 Los Angeles Fireplace Division firefighters extinguishing the ensuing blaze by about 8 p.m.
An LAFD spokesperson mentioned one of many individuals killed was a pedestrian on the bottom. Authorities imagine the opposite victims had been aboard the plane.
NBC Los Angeles later confirmed the helicopter was a information plane. It had been amongst a number of tv helicopters protecting a separate deadly Metro bus crash in Chatsworth when it fell right into a car parking zone and erupted right into a fireball, in response to witness accounts.
The influence and hearth broken 4 autos and two storage containers, although no close by buildings had been affected.
LAFD spokesperson Brandon Silverman mentioned the plane was so badly broken that firefighters initially couldn’t determine it from the wreckage.
“From the helicopter itself, it is fairly effectively destroyed,” Silverman informed NBC Los Angeles. “So we’re going to should undergo the rubble and see what number of victims there have been on board, in addition to determine the helicopter; we could not even see a tail.”
Authorities haven’t launched the names, ages or genders of the victims.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass mentioned she was “completely devastated by the lack of life in Chatsworth tonight,” whereas Gov. Gavin Newsom supplied condolences to the victims’ households and the NBC4 newsroom, thanking first responders for his or her efforts.
Investigators are nonetheless figuring out the reason for the crash. The Nationwide Transportation Security Board and Federal Aviation Administration are gathering data and are anticipated to steer the inquiry.
The tragedy occurred lower than two hours after one other lethal incident in Chatsworth, the place a collision involving a Metro bus and a passenger automobile killed two individuals and injured a number of others.
This can be a creating story and can be up to date as extra data turns into obtainable. A video has been added to this story.
