5 hospitalized after helicopter crashes in busy oceanfront space of Huntington Seaside

5 individuals had been hospitalized when a helicopter crashed within the Southern California metropolis of Huntington Seaside on Saturday afternoon. 

It occurred simply after 2 p.m. native time close to the intersection of Pacific Coast Freeway and Huntington Avenue, in response to Huntington Seaside firefighters. 

Metropolis officers inform CBS Information that the 2 individuals on the helicopter had been safely pulled from the wreckage. Three pedestrians on the road had been additionally injured within the incident, and all 5 individuals had been taken to the hospital for therapy. 

Police closed PCH between Huntington Avenue and Seaside Boulevard at round 3 p.m., as they started to analyze the crash. They requested individuals to keep away from the world and use alternate routes for at the least a number of hours after the closure was put into place. 

Dramatic video posted on social media reveals the helicopter spinning a number of instances earlier than crashing onto palm bushes and the outside stairway of the pedestrian bridge that runs over PCH. 

With SkyCal over the scene, scattered particles was seen within the seaside entry car parking zone, a big a part of which was blocked off by police tape. The tail of the plane broke off within the crash, with the remainder of the helicopter nonetheless wedged between the staircase and palm bushes as of 4:30 p.m.

There have been a number of different small helicopters parked within the car parking zone close to the place the crash occurred, simply in entrance of the Hyatt Regency and Waterfront Seaside Resort. An “unique helicopter touchdown get together” was being hosted by Automobiles ‘N Copters On the Coast on the Offshore 9 Rooftop Lounge on Saturday afternoon, the place attendees had been invited to “watch helicopters arrive from a chicken’s eye view.”

It is unclear what precipitated the helicopter to crash. The Federal Aviation Administration and the Nationwide Transportation Security Board have been notified of the crash, metropolis officers stated.