Helicopter crashes into crane in London

[Nihil]

Source: BBC

A helicopter has crashed into a crane at a building site in south London.

Police said it appeared the helicopter had hit the crane on top of a building at about 08:00 GMT. They said it was too early to confirm any casualties.

Ex-BBC producer Paul Ferguson said the helicopter "plummeted straight into the ground".

London Fire Brigade said the crash happened near Wandsworth Road in South Lambeth. They said more than 60 firefighters were at the scene.



Edit to add map of location (Vauxhall):



Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-21040410

[PoliticAverse]

1. Live feed: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21040313

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21040313

2 reported dead.

[mtnester]

2. 2 fatalities confirmed so far

[dipsydoodle]

3. plus nine casualties - one crtical

Last edited Wed Jan 16, 2013, 06:50 AM - Edit history (1)

seems to have been contributed to by fog / mist.

Bad as it is could've been far worse if it had hit a main road in the rush hour.

[mtnester]

4. I am curious if the crane had a warning light on the top

this accident would make more sense (as far as cause...no accident makes sense when folks are hurt or die) if it did not and it was morning low light with any kind of drizzle or fog...if this was a normal path for this helicopter, and someone suddenly put up a 4 story stick (guessing on height, could be bigger or smaller) without a warning beacon and visibility was poor due to time of day or weather conditions, what could go wrong?

[dipsydoodle]

6. From a picture I saw of the incident here in the UK

the crane was vertically parallel with a tall block under construction - approx same height as building. I'm guessing that if it hadn't hit the crane it may have clipped the building anyway

[muriel_volestrangler]

10. A good question:

London resident James Harvard, a 36-year-old website engineer living in Vauxhall, asked Metropolitan Police helicopters about a lack of red light on The Tower, 1 St George's Wharf in October. He was informed that "All cranes above a certain height have to be lit, and those that aren't are reported and fined."
...
He has tweeted today that since his tweet in October he had seen a light on the tower "albeit dim in comparison to most one sees". Today he told the BBC that he did not witness the crash and did not know whether or not the crane was lit at the time.

He said that in the months since he had tweeted his original concerns he had not paid close attention to the crane. "On one occasion I did see a light on the crane" he said, "but it was dim relative to other cranes."

At the press conference earlier today Met police commander Basu said that the matter of lighting would form part of an investigation. He said: "I'm not aware of those complaints but that will form part of the investigation I am sure."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2013/jan/16/helicopter-crash-in-vauxhall-live-updates#block-50f69c8db579240893bf502f

But it was not a normal path for the helicopter - the pilot had asked air traffic control to divert to nearby Battersea Heliport, apparently because of the weather (which would mean the visibility, I think - it's cold, but not that cold, and not windy or heavy rain).

[Sherman A1]

5. Sad

simply sad.

[T_i_B]

8. Yes. Very bad news

Apparently the crane driver was late for work and climbing the crane when the top was sliced off by the helicopter.

[dipsydoodle]

7. Live update link here

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21040313

[MADem]

9. 2 dead/13 lnjured...they are wondering if the pilot became incapacitated. nt