New video shows helicopter falling apart moments before deadly crash on I-10

BATON ROUGE - New video posted on social media shows the moment a helicopter fell from the sky and crashed onto I-10 Tuesday, killing a Baton Rouge pilot. The video will likely be used in the federal investigation into what happened.

WBRZ obtained video of the crash on the Bonnet Carre Spillway bridge but has made an editorial decision to not release the full footage, which shows the helicopter falling from the sky and onto I-10 followed by an explosion. The video is nearly crystal clear and is disturbing.

See the video here

WBRZ has, instead, made a decision to only release a portion of the video that helps show what happened as the helicopter experienced a catastrophic incident: As the helicopter appears from the sky in-dash camera video, it begins falling apart. It appears the main rotor is ripped from the top of the helicopter, presumably by the power lines it encountered moments before crashing. As the helicopter nose-dives, the tail rotor also appears to fall off the aircraft.

The helicopter impacts the concrete road surface of I-10 nose-down.

The pilot killed in the crash, Joshua Hawley, was a former first responder from the Baton Rouge area. On Tuesday, the mayor-president's office confirmed Joshua Hawley previously spent four years with the East Baton Rouge EMS.

More recently, Hawley flew helicopters for a Baton Rouge-based industrial construction company.

Officials plan to close the bridge Sunday so crews can repair the power lines destroyed during the crash.

Hawley's family has set up a GoFundMe page to help fund funeral costs. In just seven hours, more than $24,000 has been raised.

New video shows helicopter falling apart moments before deadly crash on I-10

More News

Desktop News

New video shows helicopter falling apart moments before deadly crash on I-10

Trending News

More News

Desktop News

News Video

Sports Video