LOS ANGELES (KTLA) — A helicopter crash along Pacific Coast Highway in Huntington Beach, California, resulted in five people being hospitalized on Saturday afternoon.
The incident occurred around 2:09 p.m. near the Cars ‘N Copters on the Coast event site, in front of the Waterfront Beach Resort, as reported by the California Highway Patrol.
Nexstar’s KTLA obtained footage, shown below, capturing the moment when the helicopter descended toward the street as spectators watched, before suddenly dropping and crashing near the roadway.
Another video shared with KTLA depicted onlookers observing the helicopter apparently flying smoothly overhead before it began to spin uncontrollably, causing those on the ground to scatter.
You can see that clip below:
Eyewitnesses described seeing the rotor detach from the tail right before the helicopter crashed into several palm trees and a bridge walkway in front of the hotel.
A Huntington Beach police spokesperson stated that the helicopter had two occupants, both of whom managed to escape, while three pedestrians were injured. All five individuals were transported to the hospital for medical care.
Kurt Johnston was standing just feet from the crash.
“It was literally right over my head,” he told KTLA’s Sara Welch. “It’s like something in a nightmare. There was an old man, about 85, who had a cut in the back of his head. He was trying to get a rag so he could stop the bleeding.”
“[Emergency crews] took the pilot out and they gave a thumbs up, so I think he’s in okay shape,” said witness Darrell Hallett.
“The police were telling us to move because they thought it was going to explode,” said Greyson Hallett.
Video from the scene also showed a child being pulled from the wreckage. No further details, including the victims’ conditions or the cause of the crash, were released.
The aircraft is a rare Bell 222, made famous by the 1980s TV show, “Airwolf.”
“The helicopter is associated with the Cars and Copters event scheduled for tomorrow,” city officials said in a statement. “The FAA and NTSB have been notified, and the investigation remains ongoing.”
Events for Cars ‘N Copters on the Coast will continue as scheduled on Sunday, Oct. 12.
Luis Zuniga, Sofia Pop Perez and Tracy Mejia contributed to this report.
