Authorities said that due to the force of the impact of both aircraft in mid-air, multiple pieces and fragments of the helicopters were thrown towards nearby residential and commercial buildings
Two helicopters collided in mid-air over Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Sunday morning, leaving six dead, according to local authorities.
One of the helicopters crashed into a car dealership, where several electric vehicles were parked, causing a fire that was extinguished, the Rio de Janeiro Military Fire Department said.
Authorities said an investigation is underway to determine the cause of the collision.
Police said that American singer and comedian Oliver Tree was on the passenger list given to aviation authorities.
So far, authorities have not been able to officially confirm the death of the artist or the other occupants, as the bodies found at the accident site were burned beyond recognition, according to Univision.
According to the EFE news agency, in statements to the media, the spokesman for the Fire Department, Fabio Contreiras, detailed that the plane crash occurred at exactly 8:59 local time and that, upon arrival, rescue teams initially located five bodies inside one of the aircraft.
The sixth fatality was found in the second helicopter, which crashed about 100 meters away from the first point of impact.
The spokesman reported that, due to the force of the impact of both aircraft in the air, multiple pieces and fragments of the helicopters were thrown towards the surrounding residential and commercial buildings.
More than 20 vehicles affected
EFE highlights that one of the aircraft caught fire after crashing into a private parking lot, and the fire destroyed about twenty electric cars that were parked there.
The mayor of Rio de Janeiro, Eduardo Cavaliere, clarified that the fire has been brought under control and that fire crews are still on site removing the wreckage of the aircraft and the affected cars.
Cavaliere also detailed that in one of the helicopters the pilot was traveling along with four people, one of them of foreign nationality, without specifying the country, while in the other one only the pilot was traveling.
According to the mayor, both pilots had "a lot of experience" and worked as aviation instructors.
According to the official, the aircraft were carrying out transfer flights to Angra dos Reis, on the Costa Verde, and the Rio de Janeiro mountain range.
According to the municipal authority, the area where the accident occurred has multiple security cameras, whose recordings are already being collected to make them available to aeronautical experts.
