Seven of nine people believed dead in Saturday’s mid-day helicopter/plane collision on the Hudson River have been recovered. Sunday afternoon, part of the helicopter was lifted from the river by a crane as well (see photo). The helicopter held six tourists, and the small plane had three passengers.
On Sunday in Hoboken, people lined Sinatra Drive and Sinatra Park on the central waterfront to watch the numerous New York Police Department boats, coast guard vessels and a large crane searching the river. Nearby, news vans from CNN, Fox, and other major television networks hummed, and a gaggle of microphones was set up in Sinatra Park for a press conference (see photos). Parts of Sinatra Drive in Hoboken have been closed to traffic all weekend.
A National Transportation Safety Board official said the investigation into the crash will continue, and that a lot of good information has been received from witnesses.
According to the New York Daily News: “Liberty Helicopters confirmed Sunday that the deceased pilot is 33-year-old Jeremy Clarke, a New Zealand native who was living in Lanoka Harbor, N.J. His passengers were 51-year-old Michele Norelli, 16-year-old Filippo Norelli, 49-year-old Fabio Galazzi, 15-year-old Giacomo Gallazi, and 44-year-old Tiziana Pedroni.
“Plane pilot Steven Altman, 60, his brother Daniel Altman, 49, and his 15-year-old son Doug Altman were also killed when they collided with the chopper.”
The investigation will cover everything from interviewing witnesses to looking at flight records to see if “visual flight rules” were followed by the pilots of the respective aircraft in order to make sure there was distance between the two. The NSTB said no black boxes have been found since that equipment is not required on helicopters and small planes.
Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer said at the press conference that anyone who saw the collision should call the Hoboken Police Department at (201) 420-2100. — RK and CM
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