A routine live news broadcast turned into tragedy on Tuesday night when a television helicopter crashed in the Chatsworth neighborhood of Los Angeles, killing three people. The aircraft, operated by NBC and its Spanish-language sister network Telemundo, was covering a collision between a bus and a car when disaster struck.
Footage broadcast live captured the chilling final seconds inside the cockpit. As an alarm sounded and the engine’s pitch changed, reporter Eliana Moreno can be heard asking the pilot in a panicked voice, “Can’t you climb?” Moments later, the picture spins violently before the signal cuts out entirely.
The crash killed Moreno, pilot George Marciniw — a veteran with more than 14,000 flight hours — and a pedestrian struck by falling debris. At least one other person was hospitalized, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. The impact triggered a fierce explosion that set four vehicles and two storage containers ablaze; a witness described it as one of the most violent fires he had ever seen.
US media reviewing the recording say the alarm matched a stall warning, typically triggered by a sudden loss of engine power or rotor speed. A veteran pilot consulted by the New York Post said the sounds and movements were consistent with possible engine failure, though authorities have not yet confirmed an official cause.
To read the full original report, visit El Tiempo.
Source: '¿No puedes subir?': últimas palabras de la periodista de NBC segundos antes de morir en el choque del helicóptero (eltiempo.com). English version produced with AI assistance.
Image: NTSBgov, PDM 1.0 (via Openverse).