Three dead in Los Angeles after NBC4 news helicopter crashes during accident coverage
A news helicopter operated for NBC4 and Telemundo 52 crashed in a Chatsworth parking lot while covering a fatal bus accident, killing reporter Eliana Moreno, pilot George Marciniw, and a bystander on the ground.
Crash during news coverage in Chatsworth
An aerial news helicopter operated for NBC4 and Telemundo 52 crashed and caught fire on Tuesday evening, 15 September 2026, in the Chatsworth neighbourhood of northern Los Angeles. The aircraft, known as NewsChopper 4 and operated by contractor Angel City Air, was covering an earlier collision between a Los Angeles Metro bus and an SUV that had resulted in two deaths and six injuries. Newsroom staff lost communication with the crew shortly before the helicopter came down in an industrial area near North Mason Avenue just before 19:00 local time.
Emergency response and casualties
The impact in a commercial parking lot resulted in a fire that engulfed four vehicles and two storage containers. The Los Angeles Fire Department sent more than 50 emergency personnel to the scene, bringing the blaze under control during the evening. Five people were located at the crash site. Officials confirmed three fatalities, including two individuals inside the aircraft and one bystander outside in the parking lot. Emergency services transported between one and two injured people to a local hospital.
Fire officials described the aircraft as largely destroyed, requiring search teams to sift through the debris.
We are trying to find out how many people were on board the helicopter.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration opened an investigation into the cause of the crash.
- A collision between an LA Metro bus and an SUV leaves two dead and six injured in Chatsworth.
- NewsChopper 4 loses contact and crashes into an industrial parking lot near North Mason Avenue.
- Anchor Colleen Williams confirms the downed aircraft's identity during a live NBC4 broadcast.
- The Los Angeles Fire Department holds a press briefing confirming three fatalities.
Live on-air confirmation by newsroom anchors
NBC4 news anchors initially reported on the helicopter crash without full confirmation that the wreckage belonged to their own station's crew. At around 21:00 local time, news anchor Colleen Williams delivered a live broadcast statement confirming the aircraft's identity to viewers.
We knew that it was a news helicopter, and we knew that we had lost contact with our people who were out there, and we have just received confirmation that NewsChopper 4 did indeed crash shortly before 7 p.m. tonight in Chatsworth.
The broadcast team paused programming shortly after the announcement to allow newsroom staff time to process the information. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass stated that she was devastated by the accident.
Profiles of the flight crew members
The two victims on board were identified as photojournalist Eliana Moreno and pilot George Marciniw, who had flown regular aerial reporting missions together since 2023. Moreno, an Orange County native, graduated from Chapman University in 2010 with degrees in broadcast journalism and political science before joining Angel City Air later that year. She broadcast in both English and Spanish across southern California under the social media moniker Eli in the heli and became engaged to Robert Barrientos in 2025.
Marciniw, a 1974 graduate of Burbank High School, had accumulated more than 14,000 flight hours and worked as a helicopter flight instructor for over 30 years. Both NBC4 and Telemundo 52 issued statements offering condolences to the families, friends, and colleagues of the victims.
