NTSB investigates fatal helicopter crash in Southern California
The National Transportation Safety Board has started assessing the scene where two helicopters collided in mid-air on Sunday while fighting a fire in Southern California. Three people were killed.
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00:00 their lives. And I'm so proud
00:01 of them. I'm so proud of my
00:01 family. I'm so proud of my
00:05 family. All right, well, making
00:06 news across California this
00:07 morning, the National
00:08 Transportation Safety Board has
00:10 started assessing the scene
00:12 where two helicopters collided
00:13 in midair on Sunday while
00:15 fighting a fire in Southern
00:17 California. Three people were
00:18 killed. And as Jeff when
00:18 reports, the victims have now
00:22 been identified. Well, our
00:24 hearts are breaking. The stars
00:25 and stripes fly at half staff
00:27 while flowers have been placed
00:29 on the ground. The fire is
00:30 still going on. The fire is
00:32 still going on. The fire is
00:34 still going on. Cal Fire
00:35 assistant chief Josh Bischoff,
00:37 Captain Tim Rodriguez and
00:39 helicopter pilot Tony Sousa,
00:40 Elaine Gio Maddie and her
00:43 husband knew Bischoff. He was a
00:48 good friend to my son. And.
00:49 Everything that we've ever
00:50 heard about him was that he was
00:53 a top notch guy. Great family
00:56 father and loving husband. The
00:58 helicopter crash was a
01:00 surprise to the family. The
01:02 helicopter crash was a
01:03 surprise to the family. It's
01:04 believed the bell collided with
01:06 a Sikorsky helicopter or sky
01:08 crane, which managed to make a
01:10 safe landing with no injuries.
01:12 The bell had been flying as a
01:14 helicopter coordinator. They
01:14 actually coordinate the
01:15 helicopters on the incident.
01:18 Make sure. They let them know
01:19 where to drop at. The National
01:20 Weather Service says winds were
01:21 moderate around the time of the
01:23 crash, with gusts around 20 to
01:26 25 MPH. Sousa had been
01:27 flying with the helicopter
01:29 for about a week, and then
01:30 suddenly the helicopter crashed
01:33 and Rodriguez flew out of
01:35 Hemet always had a smile on
01:37 their face, always helping
01:39 other people. So it's a
01:41 tremendous loss to our fire
01:43 fire fire department family,
01:44 but also a tremendous loss to
01:46 those family members. Wesley
01:48 Armstrong lives near the fire
01:50 department's air base. I
01:51 usually come over here and pass
01:53 out water and donuts to the
01:54 guys and stuff like that,
01:55 because during the summertime,
01:56 they really take care of us
01:56 and we're just so grateful to
01:58 have them here. And we're just
01:59 so grateful to have them here
02:01 and we appreciate him. The GM
02:02 Eddie's dropped off food to
02:04 the staff because a loss like
02:06 this is personal to them as
02:08 well. We know some of the guys
02:10 here from the station. My son
02:10 is retired Cal fire and my
02:15 grandson is Cal fire. And we
02:15 see the fires. The planes
02:19 going out. On almost on a daily
02:22 basis. It's just a great day.
02:26 It's a great day. It's a great