Multiple people have died, including a child, after a helicopter crashed into a radio tower in Houston, Texas.
On Sunday, Oct. 20, authorities responded to reports of a crash that occurred at around 7:54 p.m. local time near Engelke and Ennis streets, per a statement shared on X (formerly known as Twitter) by the Houston Fire Department.
In a further news conference, the Houston Police Department confirmed there were “multiple fatalities including a child,” but Chief J. Noe Diaz stated authorities “don’t know the age ranges yet.”
Diaz stated it was a Robinson R44 private aircraft that had crashed and that there had been four people in the helicopter at the time.
According to ABC News, FOX 26 Houston and CNN affiliate KTRK, all four people were killed in the crash.
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Diaz said preliminary information suggested the aircraft had come out of Ellington Airport before either striking “the cable or actually [striking] the tower.” The airport was thought to have been around 17 miles from the crash site.
Police said no residents had reportedly been affected by the crash and there was no apparent threat to the community.
The city’s mayor, John Whitmire, made sure to praise authorities for their help, saying they ran toward “the fireball” to protect the public.
Police stated bodies had yet to be identified.
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Per U.K. newspaper The Times, Diaz said of the incident, “This is a tragic event tonight, it’s a tragic loss of life.”
“The residents are secure and safe, but we have a terrible accident scene,” Whitmire added, according to CNN.
The mayor said it was “fortunate” there wasn’t an even bigger explosion due to there being a butane tank in the area.
“It will be a large investigation because of the expanse of the accident,” Diaz added, per CNN. “If residents find helicopter parts in the area, they should avoid touching them and notify fire or police officials.”
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Manuel Arciniega, who was in the area at the time of the crash, told local media outlet KPRC, “My buddy behind me told me to look up in the sky and I just saw the cell tower crumbling down, they said a helicopter hit it.”
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) told PEOPLE it is investigating alongside the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). The NTSB will be in charge of the investigation and will provide any updates, the FAA stated.
Diaz did not immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE for additional information.
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