“There is no indication that that is the case,” he told reporters, asked about any possible link to terrorism.
“The only indication was a helicopter had to do an emergency or a hard landing, or crashed onto the rooftop of a building, causing a fire, but there’s no indication of anything more than that.”
Cuomo, 61, the governor since 2011, added: “If you’re a New Yorker, you have a level of PTSD from 9/11 and I remember that morning all too well. So as soon as you hear an aircraft hit a building, I think my mind goes to where every New Yorker’s mind goes.”
Video footage and pictures from the city showed people evacuating nearby buildings after the chopper crashed into the roof at 787 7th Avenue, known as the AXA Equitable Center.
The building is situated between 51st and 52nd Streets.
The New York Police Department said in a preliminary update: “There was a helicopter hard landing on the roof of 787 7th Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. Fire has been extinguished. Please continue to avoid the area.”
Pilot Dies
The Fire Department of New York said in an update that one fatality was reported.According to the Associated Press, that fatality was the person piloting the craft.
Officials indicated that there was no one else on board.
The department said a 2-alarm fire started due to the crash but police said that fire was extinguished and Cuomo said it was under control.
The crash shook the building but no injuries have been confirmed inside the building, he said.
“People in the building itself, nobody has been hurt,” he said.
It would post a statement as soon as it has confirmed details, the authority added.
A man who said he worked on the 38th floor told the broadcaster that “the building shook.”
“It sounded like a small engine plane at first then I just felt the building shake,” he said.
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