News Helicopter Crashes By Seattle's Space Needle,

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News Helicopter Crashes By Seattle's Space Needle,

News Helicopter Crashes By Seattle's Space Needle, Killing Two

A news helicopter crashed in downtown Seattle Tuesday morning, killing two people and injuring one, officials said.

The chopper, used by local television networks KOMO, an ABC affiliate, and KING5, an NBC affiliate, went down near Seattle's Space Needle at about 7:40 a.m. PT. Photos showed a fire and large plumes of smoke where it crashed.

Two people died on the scene, where three cars were burning, the Seattle Fire Department said. Paramedics took a 37-year-old man, who had been in one of the cars, to the hospital in critical condition.

The man managed to pull himself out of the car before he was taken to Harborview Medical Center, KING5.com reported.

Three people were on board the helicopter, which was taking off from a downtown helipad when it crashed and burned, according to the FAA. It was not immediately clear whether there were other casualties.

The crash happened in the 400 block of Broad Street, next to Fisher Plaza, where KOMO is based. The weather was cloudy with winds of about 7 mph at the time.

Seattle resident Ryan Kirk, who works three blocks away from the Space Needle, was walking to a nearby coffee shop Tuesday morning when he heard a loud noise.

"I saw black smoke coming up right by the Space Needle, like the Space Needle was on fire," he said. "I knew it was something serious."

He walked closer to find out what had happened, and was overwhelmed by the smell of burning rubber.

"You almost had to cover your face," he said. "There was helicopter debris everywhere."

Eric Lundberg, of Graham, Wash., was working on a construction site across the street from the crash scene when the helicopter went down. He described a panicked scene.

“I was on the sixth floor and I heard the crash. I ran to the window, saw flames go up and people scatter. People at the job site next door were running to the evacuation site,” Lundberg said. “The flames go up, and people running for their lives.”

Witnesses said police arrived quickly, within perhaps 90 seconds.

*Twitter user captured @Deb_Slater this image of a news helicopter that crashed in downtown Seattle Tuesday morning, killing at least two people and injuring one, officials said.*

Reporting from the scene, KING5's Greg Copeland said officials had dumped a large amount of sand on the ground to soak up fuel from the crashed aircraft.

The Seattle Police Department warned residents to say away from the area, tweeting that the investigation "will continue for many hours."

Investigators from the FAA and the NTSB were en route, police said.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/news-helicopter-crashes-seattles-space-needle-killing-two-n55666