1 Killed, 11 Hurt as Copters Collide in Air at San Pedro

One man was killed and eleven people were injured, three critically, Saturday when two commuter helicopters collided in the air and crashed while attempting to land at the Catalina Air and Sea Terminal in San Pedro.

One helicopter went down on its side at the edge of the helipad near the terminal building, which is located under the Vincent Thomas suspension bridge, while the other plunged upside down into the San Pedro Channel about 50 feet from the stern of the Princess Louise floating restaurant.

On board the Princess Louise, hostess Rhonda McElwin said several of the old ship’s stern windows were cracked by the initial impact between the two helicopters.

“There was a big boom--a really big sound--and I guess that was when they collided,” she said. “I looked out the window and saw one helicopter flying around in circles, getting lower and lower until it crashed on land near the Catalina Terminal.

“A fire broke out, but there was no explosion.”

A spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration said the helicopters, operated by Helitrans of San Pedro and Island Express Inc. of Long Beach, had just returned to the mainland after picking up passengers at Avalon on Santa Catalina Island.

The crash occurred just across the channel from the Los Angeles Fire Department’s harbor station and fire boat dock on Terminal Island. Four fire boats and six scuba divers arrived within “less than a minute,” witnesses said.

“And we found a whole bunch of civilians already on the job, trying to do all the help they could,” Los Angeles Fire Department Battalion Chief Larry Schneider said.

Other witnesses said three of the civilians were from an Avalon Express excursion boat, whose crew helped pull victims to safety. A Los Angeles County Life Guard boat joined the rescue effort minutes later.

Attempting to Land

Jeff Rich, a National Transportation Safety Board inspector, said there were six people in each of the helicopters when the crash occurred at 4:42 p.m., as both aircraft apparently attempted to land on the same helipad.

“It seems like a miracle that anyone could have survived--much less 11 people,” he said.

Five of the survivors were taken to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance, where authorities refused to identify them, but said three were in critical condition and two were in serious condition.

Five others were taken to San Pedro Peninsula Hospital, where two were said to be in “very serious” condition.

Hospital spokeswoman Laurie Lundberg said Tiare Puma, 24, of Woodland Hills, and her 7-month-old daughter, Ashley, had been on board the helicopter that crashed in the channel and had evidently swallowed a considerable amount of sea water and gasoline.

Treatment for Infant

The infant was later moved by helicopter to Memorial Medical Center of Long Beach for specialized treatment.

In less serious condition at Peninsula were Russell Clendenon, 34, of New Jersey, who was treated for a broken left ankle; Stacy Habibie, 22, of Glendale, and Dixie Capp, 36, of Santa Monica, who were released after treatment for cuts and bruises.

Schneider said another passenger was treated at the scene.

The dead man was not immediately identified.

Sgt. Ray Rush of the Los Angeles Port Warden’s office said the pilot of the Helitrans helicopter was not seriously injured, and told him that he had been about to land on the terminal helipad at 4:35 p.m., when he noticed an Avalon Express sea taxi pulling in just beneath him and broke off his approach because he was aware that the buffeting from his rotors can cause turbulence for surface craft.

Pilot’s Account

Rush said the pilot, whom he did not identify told him that he made a low-altitude circle over the fire station on Terminal Island and came back to make another landing approach. He said the pilot told him he was “aware of” another helicopter in the vicinity.

But “as he came in to make the final approach, he said the world exploded,” Rush said.

Rich said the NTSB will take charge of investigating the crash, but added that “it may be some time before we get this sorted out.”

Wreckage of the Island Express helicopter was dragged ashore by cables long after nightfall. Initial inspection of the debris disclosed that the tail rotor had been severed from the body of the helicopter.