LOS ANGELES, CA (PSN) — An aerial journalist and pilot providing news coverage for NBC4 Los Angeles and Telemundo 52 were killed Tuesday evening when their helicopter crashed in Chatsworth, authorities and the stations said.
The victims aboard NewsChopper4 were identified as aerial journalist and photojournalist Eliana Moreno and pilot George Marciniw. Both worked for Angel City Air, the company that operated the helicopter.
A third person was killed on the ground. Authorities had not publicly identified that victim as of Wednesday morning.
The helicopter crashed shortly before 7 p.m. in the 9100 block of North Mason Avenue, between two commercial buildings in the San Fernando Valley community. The impact sparked a fire that damaged four vehicles and two storage containers, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.
More than 70 firefighters responded and quickly extinguished the fire. Two other people were transported to a hospital. Their conditions were not immediately released.
NewsChopper4 was covering an earlier collision involving an SUV and a Metro bus near Nordhoff Street and De Soto Avenue. That crash killed at least two people and injured six others.
NBC4 anchor Colleen Williams announced the loss during an emotional live broadcast after the station confirmed it had lost contact with its helicopter crew.
Moreno joined the Angel City Air helicopter team in 2010 after earning degrees in broadcast journalism and political science from Chapman University. She became a familiar voice during aerial coverage for several Southern California news organizations and began flying with Marciniw in 2023.
NBC4 and Telemundo 52 said they were deeply saddened by the fatal crash and extended condolences to the families, friends and colleagues of those killed.
The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration are investigating the crash. Its cause has not been determined.
Public Safety News joins journalists, first responders and viewers across California in mourning Moreno and Marciniw, who lost their lives while carrying out the essential work of informing their community.
Information compiled from reporting by NBC4 Los Angeles, The Associated Press and Reuters.