At least three people on the ground were injured after a helicopter crashed in Huntington Beach, Calif., on Saturday, the police said.
The helicopter crashed around 2 p.m. in a parking lot along the beach, the Huntington Beach Police Department said on social media. Photos from the scene show the helicopter landed on what appears to be a staircase leading to a pedestrian bridge.
Two people on board the helicopter were pulled “safely” from the wreckage, the police said. Three other people on the ground were injured, the police said.
All five were taken to a hospital, according to the police, who did not provide details about the severity of the victims’ injuries.
The police asked residents to avoid the area along the Pacific Coast Highway between Huntington Street and Beach Boulevard for several hours. The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board have been notified, the police said.
It was not clear what led up to the crash.
The helicopter was part of a “Cars ‘N Copters on the Coast” event scheduled for Sunday, the police said.
The event brings “unique hypercars” and helicopters to the beach and benefits the Huntington Beach Police and Community Foundation, according to the event’s website.
As part of the event, a “VIP Helicopter Landing Party” was being held on Saturday. The event appears to have been held a block from where the helicopter crashed. Organizers could not immediately be reached.
Tom Polkow was riding his bicycle along the beach when he stopped to watch a helicopter flying low. Mr. Polkow said the helicopter appeared to be showing off for people in the hotels and had been flying very close to palm trees.
“He just started spinning out of control and then went down on his side on a pedestrian staircase that goes up over Pacific Coast Highway to the hotels,” Mr. Polkow said.
He saw something fall from the helicopter while watching it spiral, he said.
After the crash, a tree was broken in two and the helicopter’s propellers were broken, he said. The engine of the helicopter could still be heard running.
“After a while, it started smoking, and then started getting black and I moved,” Mr. Polkow said. “At that point I moved back a ways and went behind a snack bar building ’cause I thought this could blow up.”
Firefighters arrived and extinguished the fire, he said.
“It’s just a shocking thing to see,” he said.
Videos posted to social media showed the helicopter spinning out of control and spiraling downward as pedestrians fled. Another video showed emergency medical workers helping a person on the ground.
Rylee Kirk reports on breaking news, trending topics and major developing stories for The Times.
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