Jersey City, N.J. - Video shared on X captured parts of a Bell 206 L-4 tour helicopter broken into pieces as it fell into the Hudson River near heavy populated downtown Jersey City, on a dank and windy April 10^th afternoon. Video showed parts of the aircraft tumbling through the air and crashing into the water. The main rotor was still spinning in the sky, separated from the helicopter, as the aircraft then hit the water.   

In the helicopter, along with the pilot, was a family of five from Spain that were visiting the New York City area for a combination of business and a mini-vacation, according to reports. Operated by New York Helicopters, the aircraft left from a Wall Street heliport just before 3 p.m., according to reports.  

Reports of a downed helicopter sent emergency crews, from both sides of the river, to various locations that had been reported along the Hudson. On the New Jersey side, where the aircraft crashed, the fire departments in Jersey City and Hoboken were dispatched, along with an assignment from the New Jersey Regional Fire Boat Task Force. In addition, vessels from the FDNY, NYPD and US Coast Guard headed for the area. Some of the original reports sent first responders to the area near the Colgate Clock.

The helicopter was located just North of Pier 9 that houses a Port Authority Holland Tunnel ventilation building, in Jersey City. This also dispatched Port Authority of New York and New Jersey emergency crews to the scene.  

At 3:15 p.m., Jersey City Box 272 was transmitted for the crash. The assignment included Engine Co.'s 6-2-1-5-8, Ladder Co,'s 6-2, Squad 1, Rescue 1, Foam Tender, QRV, MSU, First Battalion Chief Howard Simone and Deputy Chief Loran Hart.

A rapid response of divers from the NYPD arrived at the scene and went to work locating the victims. That included a mother and father and three young children along with the pilot. Victims were taken to the close-by pier. Divers raised them up to Jersey City firefighters and into the hands of JC Medical Center EMTs and paramedics.  

Life-saving procedures began as Battalion Chief Simone kept dispatch appraised of conditions and requested additional ambulances. He reported CPR in progress.  

It took divers an hour to extract the pilot's body from the wreckage because the chopper was so mangled, according to a NY Post report. The pilot, Sean Johnson, 36, was a Navy SEAL veteran. This was his eighth flight of the day, according to a New York Post report.   

Four victims were pronounced dead at the scene, and two others pronounced dead at the Jersey City Medical Center, according to Mayor Steven Fulop.     

Stress was clearly visible on the faces of first responders on the pier as investigators and other officials arrived on the scene. 

Jersey City's O.E.M. command vehicle and the Gong Club were staged at the scene as the investigation commenced.

A salvage vessel from the US Army Corps of Engineers, New York District, stood by. As the sun set, NYPD divers hooked up the remains of the copter-including the cockpit and cabin, the forward portion of the tail boom, the horizontal stabilizer finlets and the vertical fin-and it was placed on board of the army vessel. The main rotor blades were not recovered at the time. The search for additional parts continued the next morning. All pieces of the wreckage were transported to NTSB laboratories in Washington, DC, as part of the investigation, according to officials.