News helicopter crashes in Los Angeles, killing multiple people

Multiple people were killed Tuesday night after a news helicopter crashed and caught fire in the Chatsworth neighborhood of Los Angeles.

(CNN)- Multiple people were killed Tuesday night after a news helicopter crashed and caught fire in the Chatsworth neighborhood of Los Angeles.

KNBC and Telemundo 52 said the helicopter operated by the stations crashed shortly before 7 p.m. in the neighborhood, about 25 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles.

“This is a very, very, very tragic day in Los Angeles,” Mayor Karen Bass said.

Emergency officials and news crews were already in the area responding to a separate deadly crash involving a bus and another vehicle when the helicopter went down nearby.

Officials said the helicopter crashed near several vehicles and two large cargo containers before sparking a fire. Video from the scene showed flames and thick smoke rising from the crash site.

Dozens of firefighters responded, and the Los Angeles Fire Department extinguished the fire.

Officials said several people died at the scene and at least one person was taken to a local hospital. A fire official said one of those killed was a pedestrian who was outside in a parking lot when the helicopter crashed.

The cause of the crash was not immediately known.

Bass said the National Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation into what caused the helicopter to go down.