— Manhattan NYC
A helicopter made a hard landing on the roof of a 54-story office building in midtown Manhattan Monday, sparking a fire and killing at least one person, two senior city officials, along with the NYPD
A call about the incident at the AXA Equitable Center on Seventh Avenue and West 49th Street came in shortly before 2 p.m. The NYPD confirmed the hard landing on the roof of 787 Seventh Avenue; it wasn't clear why the chopper would have tried to land there, nor was it clear who owned the chopper.
The fire was out within about 30 minutes. The city issued an emergency notification saying to expect road closures and the presence of emergency personnel at Seventh Avenue and West 51st Street.
Gov. Cuomo, who was in the area at the time, said from the scene that "at this point there is no indication" that the landing could be terror-related. Multiple city officials confirmed that as well. Weather was poor at the time.
Evacuations were reported -- at least one person tweeted that he or she felt a building shake -- and video posted to social media showed people standing outside in the rain.
Commonwealth Partners, which partially owns the building along with CalPERS, hung up when News 4 called for information. The high-rise was built in 1986.
The White House said the president has been briefed on the situation and is monitoring the developments. The National Transportation Safety Board also said it was aware and monitoring the situation. The Federal Aviation Administration said it was "gathering information" and would update when it had confirmed details.
There have been multiple incidents in recent years with small aircraft hitting skyscrapers in Manhattan. In 2006, a plane carrying New York Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle hit a 40-story condominium tower on the Upper East Side.
In 1977, a helicopter crash on the roof of what was then the Pan Am Building killed five people.
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