Incident Photos Of The Week - Chopper Crash in NYC

This weeks incident photos are from the recovery of the helicopter that crashed yesterday into New York City’s East River, near 34th Street.

The private tourist helicopter crashed shortly after takeoff October 4th at around 3:30 pm. The helicopter had 5 people on board, including the pilot, when it went down for unknown reasons. Four were plucked from the water by rescuers that rushed to the scene. The fifth passenger, a woman, was found about 90 minutes later and was pronounced dead at the scene.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was called in to assist with response and recovery efforts. DCV Hayward, one of New York District’s three drift collection vessels, and SV Dobrin, a survey vessel, were on the scene to provide assistance. DCV Hayward lifted the helicopter out of the water and eventually placed on the nearby pier. Meanwhile, SV Dobrin performed hydropgraphic surveys to ensure the area was safe and deep enough for DCV Hayward to operate.

Today, US lawmakers called for a complete ban of tourist helicopters in Manhattan’s waterways.

6214292717_73a09d3d93_z — With the Empire State Building as a backdrop, the crew of DCV Hayward gets ready to lift a downed helicopter out of the East River. (photo by Chris Gardner, New York District public affairs)

6214815860_d49aba8857_z — DCV Hayward lifts the downed helicopter out of the water. (photo by Chris Gardner, New York District public affairs)

6214825866_72c75c0188_z — DCV Hayward heads toward land to offload the helicopter. (photo by Chris Gardner, New York District public affairs)

6214323681_cf2436ee74_z — Personnel from the New York City Police Department and the New York City Fire Department board DCV Hayward get a first look at a helicopter recovered from the bottom of the East River. (photo by Chris Gardner, New York District public affairs)

Photos via New York District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Flickr photostream