{"id":12157,"date":"2025-04-15T18:50:25","date_gmt":"2025-04-15T18:50:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/?p=12157"},"modified":"2025-04-15T18:50:27","modified_gmt":"2025-04-15T18:50:27","slug":"birthday-girls-last-smile-final-photo-shows-young-child-excitedly-sitting-in-helicopter-cockpit-16-minutes-before-plummeting-to-her-death-beside-her-parents-and-siblings-in-hudson-r","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/archives\/12157","title":{"rendered":"Birthday girl\u2019s last smile: Final photo shows young child excitedly sitting in helicopter cockpit\u2026 16 minutes before plummeting to her death beside her parents and siblings in Hudson River disaster"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class='\"entry-header\"'>\n<div class='\"entry-meta\"'>\n\n<div class='\"entry-content\"'>\n<p>Beaming at the camera and sitting proudly in the cockpit of a helicopter on the eve of her ninth birthday, a little girl excitedly waited to take off and embark on a tour over the iconic New York City skyline with her parents and young siblings on Thursday.\n</p><p><img decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/13%5C/97170333-0-image-a-28_1744374283086.jpg%5C%22">\n</p><div class='\"code-block' code-block-13>\n<p>But just 16 minutes later, tragedy struck when the eight-year-old, who had travelled to the Big Apple from\u00a0Spain\u00a0with her family, was\u00a0killed in a horror crash after the chopper plummeted into the Hudson River at 3.15pm yesterday.\n</p><p>Her brother, 10, and sister, four, also died in the horror crash, as well as her father Agustin Escobar, a Siemens executive, and mother Merce Camprubi Montal.\n</p><p>New York City\u00a0Mayor\u00a0Eric Adams\u00a0confirmed the children\u2019s ages and said in a statement that the devastating crash \u2018was a real unfortunate situation. And our heart goes out to the family members\u2019.\n</p><p>The family were on vacation in New York to celebrate her ninth birthday, which would have been today.\n</p><p>The family-of-five had just arrived from Barcelona and embarked on their first day touring the Big Apple, taking a scenic trip in the helicopter as a treat for the young girl and her mother Merce, who officials said was also celebrating her birthday.\n</p><p>Commenting on the tragedy, Jersey City mayor Steven Fulop said: \u2018The family flew out to extend the trip a couple days in NYC.\u00a0They were celebrating the mom\u2019s 40th birthday with the tourist helicopter flight yesterday.\u2019\n</p><p>It was unclear whether Fulop was referring to the holiday overall being a birthday trip for Merce or if the little girl\u2019s mother was also celebrating her birthday on the fateful day.\n</p><p>The tragic twist emerged as terrifying new footage appears to show the cause of the tragedy.\n</p><p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/05%5C/97157803-14597901-image-a-21_1744344154495.jpg%5C%22" width='\"634\"' height='\"423\"'>\n</p><p>One of the Escobar children sits in the helicopter before the crash\n</p><p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/11%5C/97167163-14598605-image-a-15_1744366062905.jpg%5C%22" width='\"634\"' height='\"422\"'>\n</p><p>The family were on vacation in New York to celebrate the birthday of one of their children, according to Spanish newspaper El Diario. Heartbreaking photos showed the Escobar family posing on the helipad and inside the aircraft before the crash\n</p><p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/04%5C/97160881-14597901-image-m-12_1744343918160.jpg%5C%22" width='\"634\"' height='\"577\"'>\n</p><p>Harrowing footage captured the moment the helicopter rotor blade flew off and splashed into the Hudson River after the deadly crash\n</p><p>A rotor blade can be seen plummeting into the water, with aviation experts saying that this likely occurred because the\u00a0main rotor blades separated from the aircraft\u00a0and sliced the tail.\n</p><p>\u2018From the footage, it appears that the main rotor struck the body of the helicopter, cutting off the tail of the helicopter, which created an unrecoverable event,\u2019 former military aviator and attorney Jim Brauchle of Motley Rice LLC told DailyMail.com.\n</p><p>\u2018The two main causes of this phenomenon are mechanical failure or excessive maneuvering. Still, a full investigation is needed to understand why this tragedy occurred.\n</p><p>\u2018Having previously represented the families of tourists killed during a helicopter tour over the Hudson River, my heart goes out to the families at this catastrophic time.\u2019\n</p><p>Another expert told\u00a0Fox 5\u00a0that in the case that the separating rotor blades sliced off the aircraft\u2019s tail boom, the flight would have been unrecoverable.\n</p><p>\u2018If that articulating head actually separated from the aircraft, the aircraft was doomed. There\u2019s no possibility of that aircraft ever having made a normal type of landing. It was going to crash,\u2019 said Tristani.\n</p><div class='\"code-block' code-block-10>\n<p>\u2018In this particular case though, when you throw a blade, one blade or the entire head, no, you\u2019re just a falling brick.\u2019\n</p><p>Michael Roth, 71, who\u00a0owns New York Helicopter\u00a0which provided the tour and the chopper, said the aircraft was\u00a0running out of fuel\u00a0before it crashed.\n</p><p>\u2018He [the pilot] called in that he was landing and that he needed fuel, and it should have taken him about three minutes to arrive, but 20 minutes later, he didn\u2019t arrive,\u2019 Roth told The Telegraph.\n</p><p>Roth said he was devastated by the crash and agreed with other experts that the video appears to show the main rotor blades had broken off.\n</p><p>\u2018The only thing I know by watching a video of the helicopter falling down, that the main rotor blades weren\u2019t on the helicopter,\u2019 he told the\u00a0New York Post.\n</p><p>\u2018And I haven\u2019t seen anything like that in my 30 years being in business, in the helicopter business. The only thing I could guess \u2013 I got no clue \u2013 is that it either had a bird strike or the main rotor blades failed. I have no clue. I don\u2019t know.\u2019\n</p><p>A \u2018catastrophic mechanical failure\u2019 left the pilot with no chance to save the helicopter, said Justin Green, an aviation lawyer who was a helicopter pilot in the Marine Corps.\n</p><p>It is possible the helicopter\u2019s main rotors struck the tail boom, breaking it apart and causing the cabin to free fall, Green said.\n</p><p>\u2018They were dead as soon as whatever happened happened,\u2019 Green said. \u2018There\u2019s no indication they had any control over the craft.\u00a0No pilot could have prevented that accident once they lost the lifts. It\u2019s like a rock falling to the ground. It\u2019s heartbreaking.\u2019\n</p><p>It comes as it was revealed that the helicopter\u2019s unidentified pilot, 36, radioed base to\u00a0warn that they were running out of fuel\u00a0just before the tragedy struck. He was also killed in the crash.\n</p><p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/04%5C/97156831-14597901-image-a-13_1744343942216.jpg%5C%22" width='\"634\"' height='\"423\"'>\n</p><p>Agust\u00edn Escobar, a Siemens executive from Spain, his wife Merce Camprubi Montal and their three children, aged four, eight and 10, took photos just before the crash\n</p><p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/05%5C/97149049-14597901-A_young_boy_was_pulled_from_the_water_and_was_taken_to_the_hospi-a-15_1744344035867.jpg%5C%22" width='\"634\"' height='\"731\"'>\n</p><p>Aviation experts explained that the crash likely occurred because the helicopter\u2019s (pictured before crashing) main rotor blades separated from the aircraft and sliced the tail\n</p><p><iframe src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/i%5C/html_modules%5C/2025%5C/04_APR%5C/250411_Hoboken_NY_Helicopter_Crash%5C/index.html%5C%22" name='\"xp-iframe-m9d2geqqwawcrkl54rs\"' height='\"100\"' scrolling='\"no\"' data-mce-fragment='\"1\"'>\n<p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/05%5C/97149095-14597901-A_helicopter_crashed_into_New_York_s_Hudson_River_with_a_child_i-a-14_1744344002227.jpg%5C%22" width='\"634\"' height='\"507\"'>\n</p><p>Witnesses said they saw the chopper \u2018split in half\u2019 before it went down near Pier 40, with one man reporting the stricken aircraft making what sounded like a \u2018sonic boom\u2019\n</p><p>Heartbreaking\u00a0photos showed the Escobar parents and their kids, aged four, eight and 10, posing\u00a0on the helipad and inside the aircraft before the crash.\n</p><p>The aircraft was operated by New York Helicopter, a local tour company.\u00a0The chopper appeared to be a N216MH \u2013 a Bell 206L-4, according to Flight Radar.\n</p><p>The helicopter flew for approximately 16 minutes before going down into the water.\u00a0 It took off from the Wall Street Heliport and did a circle near the Statue of Liberty before flying up the Hudson River to the George Washington Bridge at about 1000 feet.\n</p><p>Dramatic video showed the helicopter sinking into the water as emergency crews rushed to the scene.\n</p><p>Witnesses said they\u00a0saw the chopper \u2018split in half\u2019\u00a0before it went down near Pier 40, with one man reporting the stricken aircraft making what sounded like a \u2018sonic boom.\u2019\n</p><p>\u2018Oh my god. Oh my gosh. Oh my goodness. Oh my gosh,\u2019 said a terrified witness who watched the helicopter fall into the river.\n</p><p>Bruce Wall, a witness near the shoreline of Jersey City, New Jersey, said he saw the helicopter \u2018falling apart\u2019 in midair, with the tail and main rotor coming off. The main rotor was still spinning without the helicopter as it fell.\n</p><p>Dani Horbiak was at her Jersey City home when she heard what sounded like \u2018several gunshots in a row, almost, in the air.\u2019 She looked out her window and saw the chopper \u2018splash in several pieces into the river.\u2019\n</p><p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/05%5C/97159749-14597901-image-a-18_1744344128646.jpg%5C%22" width='\"634\"' height='\"632\"'>\n</p><p>The family had just arrived from Barcelona and embarked on their first day touring the Big Apple\n</p><p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/05%5C/97159411-14597901-image-a-24_1744344488085.jpg%5C%22" width='\"634\"' height='\"423\"'>\n</p><p>Emergency responders were seen late Thursday night pulling the remnants of the destroyed helicopter from the murky water of the Hudson River\n</p><p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/05%5C/97155505-14597901-image-a-23_1744344456162.jpg%5C%22" width='\"634\"' height='\"423\"'>\n</p><p>Devastating photos show debris from the helicopter tour floating in the Hudson River including a pink shoe\n</p><p>Mayor Eric Adams gives am update on Hudson helicopter crash\n</p><p>The helicopter was spinning uncontrollably with \u2018a bunch of smoke coming out\u2019 before it slammed into the water, said Lesly Camacho, a hostess at a restaurant along the river in Hoboken, New Jersey.\n</p><p>On air traffic control radio, an NYPD helicopter pilot can be heard saying, \u2018Be advised, you do have an aircraft down. Holland Tunnel. Please keep your eyes open for anybody in the water.\u2019\n</p><p>About five minutes after that, someone asks, \u2018Hey Finest,\u2019 a reference to the NYPD\u2019s call sign, \u2018what\u2019s going on over there by the Holland Tunnel?\u2019 \u2013 \u2018The ship went down,\u2019 someone else responds.\n</p><p>Emergency responders were seen late Thursday night\u00a0pulling the remnants of the destroyed helicopter from the murky water of the Hudson River. Photos showed a crane pulling mangled clumps of metal out of the river.\n</p><p>Jersey City Mayor Steven\u00a0explained in a post on X that major parts of the aircraft have not yet been recovered, so dive teams will scour the Hudson River for the parts on Friday.\n</p><p>\u2018Recovery operations have been secured for the night. Major parts of the aircraft have not been recovered so dive operations by the NYPD and NJSP will resume tomorrow morning,\u2019 he said.\n</p><p>Four people were pronounced dead at the scene, and two others were taken to the hospital, where they \u2018succumbed to their injuries,\u2019\u00a0NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.\n</p><p>At the time of the crash, it was cloudy with winds around 10 to 15 mph with gusts up to 25 mph,\u00a0CNN\u00a0reported.\n</p><p>Surface visibility was considered good \u2014 10 miles \u2014 but it was cloudy as a system is moving into the region, bringing light rain to the region this afternoon and evening. The water was about 50 degrees\u00a0Fahrenheit.\n</p><p>Other footage showed the chopper \u2018flying erratically\u2019 just before it fell into the water, while other clips showed pieces of the aircraft were seen flying off.\n</p><div class='\"code-block' code-block-11>\n<div class='\"code-block' code-block-9>\n<p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/05%5C/97160979-14597901-image-a-25_1744344500822.jpg%5C%22" width='\"634\"' height='\"423\"'>\n</p><p>Emergency responders enter the water after the helicopter crash.\u00a0The National Transportation Safety Board has announced it launched a \u2018go team\u2019 to investigate\n</p><p>Terrifying footage shows NYPD helicopter crash in New York\n</p><p>\u2018Our hearts go out to the families of those who were onboard,\u2019 Mayor Eric Adams said. \u2018All six have been removed from the water, and sadly all six victims have been pronounced deceased.\u2019\n</p><p>Rashmi Kamkeri, a 30-year-old engineer, was working remotely from her apartment in Newport Park when she heard a deafening crash about 3:19 p.m. on Thursday.\n</p><p>\u2018It was horrifying,\u2019 Kamkeri told DailyMail.com. \u2018I thought it was thunder and ten seconds later I saw the helicopter 10 feet above the water falling and then it made a big splash and went underneath the water.\n</p><p>\u2018I panicked\u2026 then saw a piece of the helicopter fall into the water. The Waterway boat was moving and then it took a turn.\n</p><p>\u2018I was almost in tears praying that someone would come and save them. I wished there would be someone who survives. I am so sad.\u2019\n</p><p>Anna was walking her rescue dog Archie along the West Side Highway in the rain when she saw the emergency responders and lights across the river on the New Jersey side.\n</p><p>\u2018I saw the helicopter submerged in the water and then there was a lot of commotion,\u2019 she told DailyMail.com.\n</p><p>Another witness said: \u2018One of my children said, \u2018what\u2019s that sound?\u2019 I told him I didn\u2019t know.\u00a0My other child said, \u2018Do you think it was an earthquake?\u2019 I said, \u2018no we would feel it.\u2019\n</p><p>\u2018My other child asked, \u2018Do you think a building pancaked?\u201d\n</p><p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/05%5C/97160919-14597901-image-a-26_1744344510006.jpg%5C%22" width='\"634\"' height='\"368\"'>\n</p><p>Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop said that major parts of the aircraft have not yet been recovered, so dive teams will scour the Hudson River for the parts on Friday\n</p><p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/i.dailymail.co.uk%5C/1s%5C/2025%5C/04%5C/11%5C/05%5C/97157855-14597901-Rashmi_Kamkeri_pictured_a_30_year_old_engineer_was_working_remot-a-19_1744344138109.jpg%5C%22" width='\"634\"' height='\"476\"'>\n</p><p>Rashmi Kamkeri (pictured), a 30-year-old engineer, was working remotely from her apartment in Newport Park when she heard a deafening crash about 3.19pm on Thursday\n</p><p>Location of helicopter that fell into the Hudson River\n</p><p>Escobar worked for the tech company Siemens for more than 27 years, most recently as global CEO for rail infrastructure at Siemens Mobility, according to his LinkedIn account. In late 2022 he briefly became president and CEO of Siemens Spain.\n</p><p>In a post about the position, he thanked his family, \u2018my endless source of energy and happiness, for their unconditional support, love\u2026 and patience.\u2019\n</p><p>Escobar regularly posted about the importance of sustainability in the rail industry and often traveled internationally for work, including journeying to India and the UK in the past month. He also was vice president of the German Chamber of Commerce for Spain since 2023.\n</p><p>\u2018We are deeply saddened by the tragic helicopter crash in which Agustin Escobar and his family lost their lives. Our heartfelt condolences go out to all their loved ones,\u2019 Siemens said in a statement early Friday.\n</p><p>Camprub\u00ed Montal worked in Barcelona, Spain, for energy technology company Siemens Energy for about seven years, including as global commercialisation manager and as a digitalisation manager, according to her LinkedIn account.\n</p><p>Spanish regional government officials said the family resided in Barcelona.\n</p><p>\u2018(I am) dismayed by the tragic helicopter accident in the Hudson River in New York which cost the lives of six people, five of which were members of a Barcelona family,\u2019 Catalan regional president Salvador Illa wrote on X.\n</p><p>Another regional official said Agustin Escobar was originally from Puertollano, a town in central Spain.\n</p><p>\u2018I want to express my sorrow for the traffic helicopter accident in New York that claimed the lives of Agust\u00edn Escobar and his family,\u2019 Castilla La Mancha regional president Emiliano Garc\u00eda-Page wrote on X.\n</p><p>\u2018Agust\u00edn is native of Puertollano and in 2023 we named him a Favorite Son of Castilla La Mancha.\u2019\n</p><p>The skies above the Hudson River are often filled with both planes and helicopters that both fly private recreational, commercial and tourists flights.\n</p><p>Manhattan has multiple helipads that are used by people, including business executives, to get across the Metropolitan area.\n</p><p>At least 32 have been\u00a0killed in helicopter crashes in New York City since 1977.\n</p><p>The most recent crash happened in 2018 when a chopper hit crashed into the East River,\u00a0leaving five passengers dead.\n</p><p>The chopper crashed on March 11, 2018 when the tail of the aircraft got caught on the fuel shutoff lever, the NTSB said.\n</p><p>All the passengers on board drowned. They were identified as\u00a0Daniel Thompson, 34, Tristian Hill, 29, Trevor Cadigan, 26, Brian McDaniel, 26, and Carla Vallejos-Blanco, 29.\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"</p><p>Beaming at the camera and sitting proudly in the cockpit of a helicopter on the eve of her ninth birthday, a little girl excitedly waited to take off and embark &hellip; \n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":12158,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12157","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12157","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12157"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12157\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12159,"href":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12157\/revisions\/12159"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12158"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12157"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12157"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scenicwhispers.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12157"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}</p></div></div></iframe></p></div></div></div></div></header>