HOUSTON — A privately owned helicopter crashed into a communication tower in Houston, killing four people on board, including a child.
The crash happened on Sunday evening and caused an explosion so loud that it was heard half a mile away, CNN reported.
“I heard something like fireworks and I looked up and I saw the tower flame out and completely crumble,” Sam Elsaadi told The New York Times.
All four people on board the aircraft were killed, KTRK reported. No one on the ground was hurt by either the helicopter or the tower wreckage, KPRC reported.
“We were very fortunate it didn’t topple one way or the other and the fireball pretty much was isolated,” Houston Mayor John Whitmire said, according to The Washington Post.
“It could have certainly fell into my house,” Eric Chaney, who lives near the tower told The New York Times, adding the tower “fell directly straight down and didn’t collide or impact with any of the houses surrounding the perimeter.”
The FAA will investigate. Media staging behind the Stellar Bank at Navigation and Ennis. pic.twitter.com/KRsPhjJdj0
— Houston Fire Dept (@HoustonFire) October 21, 2024
The people killed have not been identified yet, KPRC reported.
The helicopter took off from Ellington Airport, 17 miles from where it crashed, but officials were not sure where it was headed.
City officials said the crash could have been worse as there was a gas tank near the site.
Houston Police Chief Noe Diaz told those who live near the crash site that if they find pieces of the helicopter, they should not touch them and instead alert the authorities. The wreckage was spread across two or three blocks Houston Fire Chief Thomas Muñoz said, according to The Washington Post.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.
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