Helicopter spins, crashes into Hudson River; tech CEO, family die

Agustin Escobar, the CEO of Siemens' Spanish unit, and his wife and three kids were among those killed when a sightseeing helicopter carrying tourists in New York City crashed into the Hudson River.

A tourist helicopter with a family of Spanish tourists, among others, broke apart in mid-air and crashed upside down into the Hudson River on Thursday, killing all aboard, the Associated Press reported, quoting officials. The accident prompted a massive emergency response from officials on both sides of the river, between Jersey City and Lower Manhattan.

Agustin Escobar, executive of the Spanish unit of worldwide technology corporation Siemens, and his four relatives died when a helicopter crashed into the Hudson River yesterday, The New York Post announced while referring to law enforcement.

Escobar, head and president of the company's Spanish division, was among the victims of the crash, together with his wife and their three children. The helicopter, being flown to execute sightseeing excursions, slammed into the river and erupted into fire.

Rescue efforts are underway following a helicopter crash on the edge of Pier 40 at West Houston Street and West Street at approximately 3:15 p.m., reports the New York City Fire Department.

A fire department was alerted at 3:17 p.m. that a helicopter was in the water. Rescue units arrived shortly, going into high speed off the coast in Manhattan.

Social media videos captured the Bell 206 helicopter inverted and nearly fully underwater. There were a number of rescue boats spotted to be bobbing around the crashed plane.

The accident occurred at the bottom of a long maintenance pier on the side of one of the Holland Tunnel ventilation towers. Emergency vehicles and fire trucks were observed on nearby streets with blue and red flashing lights as first responders responded to the accident.

This accident is part of a long tradition of New York City air crashes. In 2009, a fatal crash between a tour helicopter and a small plane above the Hudson River killed nine. An "open door" chartered helicopter went down into the East River in 2018 and killed five passengers.