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One dead in helicopter crash at 787 Seventh
UPDATED, 4:46 p.m., June 10: A helicopter crash landed on the roof of 787 Seventh Avenue in Midtown Manhattan on Monday afternoon, according to law enforcement officials.
Emergency responders near the scene of the fatal helicopter crash today on the roof of 787 Seventh Avenue. (Photo by Benno Schwinghammer/picture alliance via Getty Images
The accident killed one person in the privately-owned helicopter, presumed to be the pilot and the only person in the helicopter, but Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that no one in the building was injured. The chopper was used for executive travel, according to Mayor Bill de Blasio.
The crash sparked a fire that has since been extinguished, according to the NYPD. The cause of the crash remains unclear, but officials do not believe it was linked to terrorism.
787 7th ave, #midtown NYC. We’re 1 block south. 20 mins ago there was a loud sound like a too-low #helicopter & I looked up and saw sheet of flame on roof and then smoke. News reports saying helicopter/small plane crash onto roof which would be consistent with what I heard/saw. pic.twitter.com/swY3ksLskH
— Lance Koonce (@LHKoonce) June 10, 2019
The helicopter took off from the 34th Street helipad around 1:30 p.m. and crash landed at 787 Seventh Avenue about 11 minutes later, police said. Officers believe the helicopter was heading to Linden, New Jersey.
The 51-story commercial building, which was evacuated following the crash, is known as the AXA Equitable Center and owned by CalPERS, which bought it in 2016 for about $1.95 billion.
“We are aware of the helicopter crash in New York City involving a building in our real estate portfolio,” CalPERS said in a statement. The company added that it is “monitoring the situation and will continue to communicate with our manager, CommonWealth Partners, and their on-site staff.”
Building tenants include Le Bernardin, Maison Kayser and the food hall Urbanspace, which signed a lease for almost 11,000 square feet in January.