Police helicopter crashes onto the shore in Newport Beach, California with the two pilots rescued by swimmers and police officers who helped to pull them from the aircraft
- Huntington Beach Police Department has confirmed a helicopter from the force crashed on Saturday evening in Newport Beach, California
- The helicopter crashed in Newport Beach just after 6:30pm
- Witnesses to the crash say the chopper was flying normally until it suddenly spiraled out of control
Two people were inside a police helicopter as it crashed onto the shoreline at Newport Beach, California on Saturday evening.
The accident happened just after 6:30pm according to the Newport Beach Fire Department.
Within moments of the helicopter crashing into the water, people nearby dashed in to help save the occupants.
Video footage from those standing close by sees a team of three people rush into the water, including a police officer who could be seen freeing the pilot from the helicopter’s cab.
A police helicopter could be seen submerged along the shoreline at Newport Beach, Saturday
The coastguard could be seen studying the situation. It’s believed two people were onboard
The helicopter landed close to the shoreline. The two who were onboard were taken to hospital
People could be seen on paddle boards as they headed into the water which was at waist height.
Two other police officers could also be seen wading in as the pilot was quickly transported to an ambulance that was summoned to take him to a trauma center.
It’s believed a second occupant was also briefly trapped before also being freed and being taken to hospital.
The Huntington Beach Police Department has since confirmed the helicopter is from its department.
The pair who were inside were taken to a local hospital, reports NBC Los Angeles.
As the helicopter came down, the pilot attempted to land it close to land
The chopper could be seen having overturned in the surf
There were plenty of eyewitnesses to the accident.
‘I witnessed the response to this and I can tell you I’ve never seen anything like it,’ wrote one user on Twitter.
‘They had no less than 30-40 units barricading streets and neighboring fire/rescue rolling through… in minutes. Lifeguards were there from the jump, I saw a total of four neighboring cities respond. I don’t think they could have done anything better. It was amazing.’
‘Witnessed the entire crash and they are heroes as you could tell they knew well in advance and were able to get away from hitting anyone! Hope they are ok!,’ wrote Greg Bunker.
There were plenty of eyewitnesses to the accident who took to Twitter on Saturday night
Huntington Beach Police Department has confirmed a helicopter from the force crashed on Saturday evening in Newport Beach, California
The police department confirmed that one of their aircraft had crash landed
‘I was barbecuing over on 26th street. You could see a helicopter spiraling, looked like it was losing a little bit of control and it kind of went out of the line of sight but you could see it was going down and apparently crashed in the water over there,’ Joseph Thor said to KTLA.
“All of a sudden I hear something sputtering, really close,” said a woman who saw the helicopter to ABC7.
“It didn’t sound like a regular helicopter. And somehow, he managed to get it into the bay to save everybody’s life, because if he had landed on a house, there would be a lot of casualties. I feel very fortunate right now.’
The helicopter was visible between Lido Isle and the Balboa Peninsula and one of three that operate out of HBPD, all of which are turbine-powered.
HBPD helicopters serve Huntington Beach, Newport Beach and the Costa Mesa areas.
Huntington Beach Police helicopter pilots are pictured in a photo from last summer
Orange County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Ryan Anderson said that agency assisted, deploying resources to assist with a rescue.
The Newport Beach Fire Department and the Orange County Fire Authority also were on scene.
The helicopter crash in California happened just hours after another helicopter crashed off Miami Beach, Florida.
The accident occurred in full view of beachgoers on Saturday afternoon.
Two people were also hospitalized in that crash.