An NBC News helicopter crashed while covering a report of a deadly Metro bus collision in Los Angeles on Tuesday (September 15), killing three people and sending two others to hospital, authorities said.

Aerial footage showed the wreckage engulfed in flames near a storage facility, with firefighters extinguishing fires that spread to vehicles and storage containers.

Video from the scene later in the evening showed NBC News reporter Robert Kovacik visibly distraught behind a cordon before embracing Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and firefighters following a news conference.

The fire department said the National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration will investigate the crash, which occurred as several news helicopters were reporting on the earlier bus collision that killed at least two people.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

CHATSWORTH, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (SEPTEMBER 15, 2026) (ABC AFFILIATE KABC - No use USA. No archive)

1. VARIOUS AERIALS OF WRECKAGE OF HELICOPTER BURNING ON GROUND

2. FIREFIGHTER DOUSING FIRE / FIRE BEING EXTINGUISHED

3. FIREFIGHTER SPRAYING WATER ON SMOLDERING WRECKAGE

4. CRASH SITE, EMERGENCY VEHICLES ALONG ROAD

5. FIREFIGHTERS SAWING SIDE OF CONTAINER DOOR

CHATSWORTH, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (SEPTEMBER 15, 2026) (ABC AFFILIATE KABC - No use USA. No archive) (NIGHT SHOTS)

6. VARIOUS AERIALS OF HELICOPTER WRECKAGE

7. NBC REPORTER, ROBERT KOVACIK, CRYING BEHIND CORDON LINE AT CRASH SITE

8. FIREFIGHTER WALKING AWAY WITH KOVACIK

9. EMERGENCY WORKERS AT CRASH SITE

10. VARIOUS OF EMERGENCY WORKERS UNLOADING EQUIPMENT FROM SEARCH AND RESCUE VEHICLE

11. LOS ANGELES MAYOR, KAREN BASS, WALKING AT SITE NEXT TO OTHER OFFICIALS

12. (SOUNDBITE) (English) LOS ANGELES MAYOR, KAREN BASS, SAYING:

"Shortly after 5 p.m., a crash occurred between a bus and a vehicle sending multiple people to the hospital and unfortunately killing two. And we know that others were left in critical condition. Then there was a crash of a helicopter that crashed near the scene near the earlier collision."

13. WHITE FLASH

14. (SOUNDBITE) (English) LOS ANGELES MAYOR, KAREN BASS, SAYING:

"The National Transportation Safety Board will be leading the investigation."

15. WHITE FLASH

16. (SOUNDBITE) (English) LOS ANGELES FIRE DEPARTMENT CAPTAIN, RICO GROSS, SAYING:

"We did have a loss of lives of three members of the community and, two members transported to the hospital. Again, over 70 firefighters responded to mitigate the incident and to gather control."

17. KOVACIK HUGGING BASS AFTER NEWS CONFERENCE

18. NEWS CREW SHAKING HANDS WITH FIREFIGHTER

19. WHITE FLASH

20. GROSS EMBRACING KOVACIK, GROSS SAYING: "You've always been there for us" / KOVACIK SAYING: "I can't tell you how you guys responded to them. I've never seen anything like it from one tragedy." / NEWS CREW SHAKING HANDS WITH FIREFIGHTERS