Three killed in Los Angeles news helicopter crash covering bus collision
A news helicopter operated by Angel City Air crashed in a commercial parking lot in Los Angeles, killing reporter Eliana Moreno, pilot George Marciniw and Guatemalan tourist Edy Gutierrez Mejia; two others were injured.
A Eurocopter AS350 belonging to Angel City Air crashed Tuesday evening in a Los Angeles business parking lot while covering a fatal bus collision in Chatsworth, a suburb about 25 miles northwest of downtown. The aircraft, which was providing live footage for NBC4 and Telemundo 52, struck a pedestrian and killed three people on board. The victims were Eliana Moreno, an aerial photojournalist-reporter engaged to be married, veteran pilot George Marciniw, who was nearing retirement, and 29-year-old Edy Gutierrez Mejia, a tourist who had arrived from Guatemala earlier that day. Two additional occupants were taken to hospital with injuries, officials said.
NBC4 anchor Colleen Williams said the station lost contact with its crew before confirming the crash on air. "We are going to take a couple of minutes to think about that, to process and to regroup," she said, after which the broadcast switched to other programming.
The National Transportation Safety Board has opened an investigation, with a preliminary report expected within 30 days and a final report that could take up to 18 months. Angel City Air, the helicopter’s operator, confirmed that Moreno and Marciniw had been employed by the company since 2010 and 2023 respectively and had worked together on numerous stories.
Moreno, a graduate of Chapman University, had reported for regional outlets and received a 2023 award from the Radio and Television News Association of Southern California for continuing coverage. Marciniw, a lifelong Angeleno, had logged more than 14,000 flight hours and served as a helicopter flight instructor for over three decades. California state Senator Caroline Menjivar expressed condolences to Marciniw’s family, and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass called the day "very tragic" for the city, referencing both the helicopter crash and the bus collision that also claimed two lives.
Mejia, known locally as "Pichi," was identified by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner as a resident of Cuilapa, Guatemala. His family described him as a playful person who participated in community events. The Consulate General of Guatemala in Los Angeles was contacted for comment.