Video: 3 killed as helicopter crashes while covering bus collision in LA

The helicopter came down between two commercial buildings, landing on or near several vehicles and shipping containers

A Los Angeles news helicopter crashed in the San Fernando Valley on Tuesday while covering a deadly SUV-bus collision, with footage from inside the aircraft capturing the terrifying moments before the crash.The helicopter went down in a parking lot near the 9100 block of N Mason Avenue in Chatsworth, close to the scene of an earlier crash in which an SUV slammed into a Metro bus, killing two people and injuring six others.Footage from inside the helicopter showed the aircraft apparently losing control before the recording ended as it crashed. The helicopter came down between two commercial buildings, landing on or near several vehicles and shipping containers.

A large fire broke out following the impact.

Los Angeles Fire Department Captain Branden Silverman said one person was confirmed dead at the scene. The victim appeared to have been outside the helicopter when it crashed.

“We’re trying to determine how many patients were inside the helicopter,” Silverman said during a news conference, adding that the aircraft was “pretty well destroyed”.Firefighters were forced to search through the wreckage to determine whether there were other people aboard and to identify the aircraft.

It was not immediately clear how many people were inside at the time of the crash.Local media reported that the helicopter belonged to a television station, while CBS said the exact station had not immediately been confirmed.The helicopter had been covering the earlier bus crash, in which an SUV was partially lodged inside a Metro bus. Emergency crews were still responding to that scene when the aircraft came down nearby.The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board have been contacted to assist with the investigation, while Los Angeles police are also investigating the helicopter crash.