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Newly released video shows the terrifying final seconds before a news helicopter suddenly lost altitude and crashed Tuesday night, killing its two-person crew and a man on the ground in Chatsworth.
The footage, obtained by NBCLA from a nearby building, captures the Airbus helicopter hovering over an intersection before it abruptly begins dropping toward the ground.
The helicopter had been covering a deadly crash involving an SUV and a Metro bus when it went down in the parking lot of a self-storage business.
Reporter Eliana Moreno, 38, and pilot George Marciniw were killed in the crash, along with 29-year-old Edy Gutierrez Mejia, who was on the ground.
The new video offers only a partial view of the descent because a building blocks the camera’s view of the helicopter’s final moments. But flames and thick smoke can be seen erupting from behind the building after the crash, with emergency crews arriving moments later.
The footage comes as federal investigators probe whether the helicopter suffered an engine or mechanical failure.
The video also appears to show that the helicopter did not simply run out of fuel.
Smoke emerges roughly 20 seconds after impact, while the first flames appear about 50 seconds after the crash.
The NTSB has urged anyone with video from the crash scene to come forward as investigators piece together the helicopter’s final moments.
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