Live Updates: Helicopter Crashes Into Hudson River Near Manhattan

Rescue vessels in the Hudson River after the crash. Credit…Adam Gray for The New York Times

A helicopter crashed into the Hudson River near the West Side of Manhattan on Thursday afternoon, the Police Department reported.

Two adults and three children have been pulled from the water, according to two people briefed on the rescue efforts. Their condition was not yet known.

Police boats and other rescue vessels surrounded what appeared to be an overturned helicopter floating in the river. Witnesses on social media reported having seen a helicopter in distress before it plunged into the water.

Tourist helicopters routinely fly over the river, carrying sightseers from heliports in Lower Manhattan and New Jersey.

The Fire Department reported that the crash occurred near Pier 40, with emergency calls coming in at 3:17 p.m. about a helicopter in the water. Just after 4 p.m., rescue units were still working.

Peter Park, a resident of Jersey City, N.J., said he heard “a loud bang” at about 3:15 p.m. and looked out his window to see an aircraft emitting black smoke. Then he saw the unattached blades of a helicopter falling into the river so close to the New Jersey side that he feared they might strike people on the shore.

Mr. Park said he had texted his wife to say that he thought he had just seen a helicopter fall into the river. Then he dialed 911, he said.

This is a breaking story and will be updated.

Andy Newman contributed reporting.

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