3 Dead In TV Helicopter Crash Near Scene Of Fatal SUV-Metro Bus Collision: Authorities

LOS ANGELES — A helicopter from a television station crashed Tuesday evening in Chatsworth, killing three people, while responding to the scene of a collision between a passenger vehicle and a Metro bus that killed another three and injured several more, according to authorities.

The copter went down between two commercial buildings just before 7 p.m. in the 9100 block of North Mason Avenue, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department, which reported an hour later that three people died at the scene and one person was taken to a local hospital in unknown condition. One of the people killed was on the ground, according to the department.

NBCLA reported around 9 p.m. that it had confirmed the helicopter was its news chopper.

"We can now confirm that the chopper that went down in Chatsworth tonight was, in fact, Newschopper 4," announced NBC4 Anchor Colleen Williams.

"We have been telling you that we have been piecing it together here. We knew it was a news chopper. We knew we lost contact with our people out there, and we just received confirmation that, in fact, Newschopper 4 went down just before 7 o'clock tonight in Chatsworth, and we are going to take a couple of minutes to think about that, to process, and to grieve through, but in the meantime if anything should happen. If there is a news conference, if there is anything, we will break into programming and bring it you. We knew in our heart."

The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration will investigate.

A total of 56 firefighters responded, the department said. Four vehicles and two storage containers were damaged by the blaze. The fire was extinguished an hour after the crash.

The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed to City News Service that the helicopter that crashed near the site of the SUV-Metro bus collision was from a television station.

Fatal Bus Crash

The initial vehicular crash occurred around 5 p.m. in the area of Nordhoff Street and De Soto Avenue, authorities said.

An SUV plowed into the side of the bus, according to KTLA footage from the scene.

Firefighters were extricating trapped victims and assessing all passengers on the bus, according to the department, and six injured victims were taken to local hospitals. The department initially reported two fatalities, but that number later rose to three, Metro confirmed to City News Service.

A crisis response team was notified and the intersection was shut down, authorities said.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

City News Service contributed to this story.