The black-and-white footage showed the helicopter headed straight for the tower, which appeared not to be illuminated except for one flashing light at the very top. In seconds, the aircraft made contact with the looming structure.

“PIO is en route to a reported helicopter crash at Engelke & Ennis. Preliminary info that a helicopter hit a radio tower at about 7:54 pm […] All info further information will come from the scene,” reads their statement.

Following their first post, the department shared another. This one included images showing the wreck and damage and had a caption that explained, “The FAA will investigate. Media staging behind the Stellar Bank at Navigation and Ennis.”

According to Whitmire, Station 17 of the Houston Fire Department (HFD) had been just down the street from where the helicopter crashed and arrived at the scene minutes after hearing the explosion.

After confirming that first responders sprung into action and made sure that Houston residents were “secure and safe,” Whitmire revealed, “We have a terrible accident scene. Multiple fatalities […] I’m going to be very cautious in my description of facts and details, but what I want to emphasize is that the area is secure.”

The Chief of the Houston Police Department clarified, “We don’t know the age ranges yet, but that we are pretty sure of.”

Additionally, the identities of the deceased have not been disclosed yet. “My prayers are with the families of the people in the helicopter,” shared the Police Chief while speaking on the fatalities.

On this matter, they requested that any civilian who may have come across debris abstain from touching it and instead, notify the police or fire department, who would then remove it safely.

Aside from the fatalities, reports confirmed that no one who was on the ground got injured from the collapse of the tower. There were also no additional damages to the structures around it.

Additional details include the fact that Houston City Councilmember for District H, Mario Castillo, confirmed that the helicopter was one used for private touring. Authorities also made it clear that the accident is still being investigated and more information will be dispersed in the days to come.

Since news of the tragedy has circulated public spheres, CNN disclosed that, days before the crash, the radio tower’s lighting had problems.

A notice reportedly shared by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to pilots stipulated that the tower’s lights were “unserviceable” until the end of the month (October 2024).

The 2020 FAA guideline states that towers with heights of over 200 feet above ground level should be lighted and/or marked. Furthermore, any lighting outage “should be corrected as soon as possible.”

Given that helicopters typically fly at lower altitudes, guy wires, and towers tend to pose a hazard for helicopter pilots who may have trouble seeing such objects at night.

As the investigation into the crash continues, we extend our heartfelt condolences to the families who lost their loved ones due to the accident.