1 dead as helicopter crash-lands on top of midtown Manhattan building

A helicopter crash-landed on top of a high-rise in midtown Manhattan on June 10, starting a fire and leaving one person dead as the entire building shook from the impact.

“There was a helicopter hard landing on the roof of 787 7th Avenue in Midtown Manhattan,” the New York Police Department tweeted as emergency services flooded the area.

“The fire has been extinguished, and members continue to operate in response to fuel leaking from the helicopter. There is currently one fatality reported,” tweeted the city’s fire department.

President Donald Trump said he had been kept informed of the situation.

“I have been briefed on the helicopter crash in New York City. Phenomenal job by our GREAT First Responders who are currently on the scene. THANK YOU for all you do 24/7/365! The Trump Administration stands ready should you need anything at all,” Trump tweeted.

Speaking at the scene, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo told reporters there had been “casualties” on board the helicopter — suggesting the pilot was the person killed — and that a fire briefly broke out, but that no one in the building had been hurt.

“The preliminary information is that there was a helicopter that made a forced landing, emergency landing, or landed on the roof of the building for one reason or another,” Cuomo said.

“People who were in the building said they felt the building shake,” the Governor added.

The city fire department urged people to avoid the area.

The pilot was identified as Tim McCormack, who was going to land at Linden Airport in New Jersey, said Paul Dudley, the airport’s director.

“Tim McCormack is a well-respected, highly trained veteran pilot who also had tremendous local knowledge, having flown in this area for many years,” Dudley said in a phone interview. “We’re all saddened and shocked.”