Eyewitness: Helicopter fell from sky into Pearl Harbor

A 16-year-old boy has been critically injured after a helicopter crashed into the water in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Winrich claims to have seen dark smoke coming from the back of the helicopter just before it took the plunge into the shallow, murky water below.

He said: “I thought it would be a great video, whatever it is, and all of a sudden it essentially just fell out of the sky and crash-landed in the water”.

The last audible sounds in the footage are frantic shouts of “come here, come here, come here!” as bystanders rushed to the water.

U.S. Navy spokeswoman Agnes Tauyan identified the aircraft involved in Thursday’s crash as a Bell 206.

Two passengers were taken to the hospital in stable condition; a third was in critical condition.

Another family member was taken the Kaiser Moanalua Medical Center in serious condition.

Details on the conditions of two other people on board, including the pilot, were not immediately available.

No names were released.

At least three people were hurt in the crash. “As soon as it hit the water, some people popped out”, said Burner, who was among those who jumped into the water to help the passengers to shore.

“It was just insane, unbelievable”, said Daniel Rose, who’s visiting from MI.

“We saw people running, which obviously made us scared”, she said.

“It was a team effort and we pray that he’s OK”, he added.

No word yet on what caused the crash.

Operations at the visitor center, including visits to the nearby USS Arizona Memorial, were suspended, the Navy said.

Max Burner, of Redwood City, Calif., said the helicopter was “sputtering” at about 500 feet, before it started quickly losing altitude. The Navy said the helicopter will be taken to Genesis Aviation’s hangar at the airport, where the National Transportation Safety Board will conduct an investigation. And when Hawaii’s military population is included, helicopter crash fatalities are even higher.

His daughter, 20-year-old Justice, says, “We started seeing this helicopter coming down”. Both aircraft were CH-53E Sea Stallion helicopters that were part of Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 463.