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Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has offered his condolences to friends and relatives of a Spanish family who died in New York on Thursday after their sightseeing helicopter crashed in the Hudson River, killing all aboard including the pilot.
It emerged on Friday that the victims were Agustín Escobar, his wife, Mercè Camprubí, and their three children, who were 11, five and four. The identity of the pilot has not yet been made public.
The sightseeing helicopter broke apart in midair and crashed upside down into the Hudson between Manhattan and the New Jersey waterfront shortly after 3pm ET, leading to a huge response from emergency crews.
Videos posted on social media showed the aircraft mostly submerged, upside down in the water, and rescue vehicles crowding on to the streets on shore as emergency workers raced to save those onboard.
“We have had devastating news about the helicopter accident in the River Hudson,” Sánchez posted in a message on X on Friday. “Five Spaniards from the same family, three of them children, lost their lives along with the pilot. It’s an unimaginable tragedy. I share the pain of the victims’ loved ones in this heartbreaking moment.”
Spain’s transport minister, Oscar Puente, also paid tribute, saying: “Reading with horror that the victims of the awful helicopter accident in the US were Agustín Escobar and his family. I met him over the past year in his capacity at Siemens Spain. He was a charming, hard-working and talented person.”
The German industrial conglomerate Siemens later confirmed that Escobar worked for the company as head of rail infrastructure at its mobility division.
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic helicopter crash in which Agustín Escobar and his family lost their lives,” Siemens said in a statement.
A person briefed on the investigation, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Associated Press (AP) that Camprubí was a global manager at an energy technology company.
The New York mayor, Eric Adams, confirmed six people had been pronounced dead, including three children and three adults.
Speaking at a news conference on Thursday evening, Adams said his thoughts were with the crash victims and their families. An investigation into the cause of the accident was continuing, he said.
Jessica Tisch, the NYPD commissioner, said most of the passengers were already dead when they were removed from the water, but two passengers were taken to a nearby hospital, where they died soon after.
Tisch said the Bell 206 helicopter, operated by New York Helicopter Tours, took off from a downtown helicopter pad at about 3pm and flew north over the Hudson. It turned south when it reached the George Washington gridge and crashed minutes later, hitting the water upside down and sinking near Lower Manhattan about 3.15pm, just off Hoboken, New Jersey.
Witness Bruce Wall told the AP he saw the helicopter “falling apart” in midair, with the tail and propeller coming off. The propeller was still spinning without the aircraft as it fell, he said.
Lesly Camacho, a hostess at a restaurant along the river in Hoboken, New Jersey, said she had seen the helicopter spinning uncontrollably before it slammed into the water.
