Turned into a horror bulletin: The chain of events that led to the news helicopter crash

A severe bus accident in Los Angeles, where an SUV collided with a city bus, turned into a double disaster within two hours when a news helicopter covering the scene crashed. Two passengers were killed in the bus accident; in the helicopter crash, aerial photojournalist Eliana Moreno, pilot George Marciniv, and a bystander were killed. The driver suspected of driving under the influence was arrested.

What began as a serious road accident in Los Angeles turned into a deadly aviation disaster within two hours. The incident began around 5:00 PM, when an SUV, whose driver was suspected of driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol, ran a red light and collided head-on with a city bus. Two passengers, Gage Vida and Daniel Castillo, were killed in the accident. While emergency services were operating at the scene, a KNBC-TV and KVEA-TV news helicopter hovering over the area began to lose altitude for reasons under investigation. The helicopter struck a shipping container in a nearby parking lot and caught fire. The disaster killed aerial photojournalist Eliana Moreno, veteran pilot George Marciniv, and a bystander, Eddie Gutierrez Mahia, a tourist from Guatemala. The suspected driver was arrested and faces charges including second-degree murder.