WATCH the nerve-racking moments bystanders rushed to save a child’s life after he became trapped beneath a helicopter wreckage.
Terrifying video shows the moments following a Bell 22SP chopper spun out of control at the “Cars ‘n’ Copters” event in Huntington Beach.
The crushed boy was left with a collapsed lung and a brain bleedInstagram/Angels.304
The helicopter crashed onto the beachfront steps at Huntington Beach
Witnesses to the smash can be seen scrambling for cover as the helicopter crashed back to Earth on beachfront steps.
Other bystanders rushed to the wreckage after seeing young Oliver Holland trapped beneath the helicopter.
Footage shows the aircraft twirling clockwise above Huntington Beach, then plummeting to the ground, before becoming wedged between palms and a staircase near Pacific Coast Highway.
Horrified beachgoers were heard shouting “oh no, oh my god” as the helicopter hurtled to the ground.
Two adults and the child were hospitalised following the horrifying accident.
There has been no update on their conditions.
It has been revealed the chopper was piloted by daredevil flyer Eric Nixon at the time of the smash.
In a statement to Instagram, Nixon said he and his passenger had not been seriously injured.
Oliver’s sister Madeline released a statement on a GoFundMe for the boy’s medical expenses, saying the family was “praying for a safe recovery”.
“We can’t really say anything else,” she said.
“Oliver was enjoying a day at the beach when suddenly a helicopter malfunctioned and came crashing down on him,” she added.
“He is currently in the hospital receiving surgery; he has a collapsed lung and a brain bleed.”
Madeline described Oliver as “The smartest, funniest boy” she has ever known.
The online fundraiser has raised $54,880 at the time of writing.
Witnesses told KTLA that the chopper’s rotor detached from the helicopter, sending it spinning.
Nixon, the owner of the smashed helicopter, is known for death-defying stunts.
The flying influencer was piloting the chopper to join a flashy display of luxury cars and private helicopters on the waterfront, before the nightmare began.
Bystander Jackson Etchert told local media: “It was spinning weird”.
Instagram/nixon.helicoptersIt has been revealed that daredevil pilot Eric Nixon was flying the chopper at the time of the crash[/caption]
GettyWitnesses were seen rushing away from the helicopter seconds before it crashed back down to earth[/caption]
“I [wondered] if it’s doing a trick,” he said.
“Then I saw it spinning even faster, I’m like ‘nope, that this is crashing’,” he added.
“First the tail rotor snapped, next thing I know I saw something that looked like it hit the main rotor blade.”
Aviation photographer Roy Rausch told the Orange County Register the helicopter had “just done a couple of fly-bys and circled back around,” in the moments before disaster struck.
The National Transportation Safety Board has launched an investigation into the crash.
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