Two members of a Spanish family tragically killed when their tour helicopter plunged into New York’s Hudson River were still alive when they were pulled out of the water.
Agustín Escobar, a Siemens executive from Spain, his wife Merce Camprubi Montal and their three young daughters aged four, five and son aged 11, were killed when their sightseeing chopper plummeted into the Hudson River on Thursday. The 36-year-old pilot, who has not been named, was also killed.
It has since emerged that two of the passengers were alive when divers pulled them out of the freezing water.
They would likely have experienced unimaginable terror and pain during their final moments if they’d remained conscious after the brutal impact with the icy river.
The two relatives, who weren’t named by officials, were later declared dead at the hospital, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.
The family were on vacation in New York to celebrate the birthday of one of their young daughters, according to Spanish outlet Antena3.
They had just arrived from Barcelona and embarked on their first day touring the Big Apple, taking a scenic trip in the helicopter around the Statue of Liberty and up to the George Washington Bridge.
The tragic twist emerged as terrifying new footage appears to show the cause of the tragedy.
Agustín Escobar, a Siemens executive from Spain, his wife Merce Camprubi Montal and their three children, aged four, five and 11, took photos just before the crash
Harrowing footage captured the moment the helicopter rotor blade flew off and splashed into the Hudson River after the deadly crash
Devastating photos show debris from the helicopter tour floating in the Hudson River including a girl’s shoe
A rotor blade can be seen plummeting into the water, with aviation experts saying that this likely occurred because the main rotor blades separated from the aircraft and sliced the tail.
‘From the footage, it appears that the main rotor struck the body of the helicopter, cutting off the tail of the helicopter, which created an unrecoverable event,’ former military aviator and attorney Jim Brauchle of Motley Rice LLC told DailyMail.com.
‘The two main causes of this phenomenon are mechanical failure or excessive maneuvering. Still, a full investigation is needed to understand why this tragedy occurred.’
Heartbreaking photos showed the Escobar parents and their kids, aged four, five and 11, posing on the helipad and inside the aircraft before the crash.
The aircraft was operated by New York Helicopter, a local tour company. The chopper appeared to be a N216MH – a Bell 206L-4, according to Flight Radar.
The helicopter flew for approximately 16 minutes before going down into the water. It took off from the Wall Street Heliport and did a circle near the Statue of Liberty before flying up the Hudson River to the George Washington Bridge at about 1000 feet.
Dramatic video showed the helicopter sinking into the water as emergency crews rushed to the scene.
The family were in vacation in New York to celebrate the birthday of one of their children, according to Spanish newspaper El Diario. Heartbreaking photos showed the Escobar family posing on the helipad and inside the aircraft before the crash
One of the Escobar children sits on the helicopter before the crash
Witnesses said they saw the chopper ‘split in half’ before it went down near Pier 40, with one man reporting the stricken aircraft making what sounded like a ‘sonic boom.’
Michael Roth, 71, who owns New York Helicopter which provided the tour and the chopper, said the aircraft was running out of fuel before it crashed.
‘He [the pilot] called in that he was landing and that he needed fuel, and it should have taken him about three minutes to arrive, but 20 minutes later, he didn’t arrive,’ Roth told The Telegraph.
Roth said he was devastated by the crash and agreed with other experts that the video appears to show the main rotor blades had broken off.
‘The only thing I know by watching a video of the helicopter falling down, that the main rotor blades weren’t on the helicopter,’ he told the New York Post.
‘And I haven’t seen anything like that in my 30 years being in business, in the helicopter business. The only thing I could guess – I got no clue – is that it either had a bird strike or the main rotor blades failed. I have no clue. I don’t know.’
Emergency responders were seen late Thursday night pulling the remnants of the destroyed helicopter from the murky water of the Hudson River. Photos showed a crane pulling mangled clumps of metal out of the river.
The family had just arrived from Barcelona and embarked on their first day touring the Big Apple
Emergency responders were seen late Thursday night pulling the remnants of the destroyed helicopter from the murky water of the Hudson River
Jersey City Mayor Steven explained in a post on X that major parts of the aircraft have not yet been recovered, so dive teams will scour the Hudson River for the parts on Friday.
‘Recovery operations have been secured for the night. Major parts of the aircraft have not been recovered so dive operations by the NYPD and NJSP will resume tomorrow morning,’ he said.
At least 32 have been killed in helicopter crashes in New York City since 1977.
The most recent crash happened in 2018 when a chopper hit crashed into the East River, leaving five passengers dead.
