Media in the city had scrambled to cover an incident in which an SUV ploughed into a bus in the Chatsworth area, northwest of downtown, killing three people and injuring many others. Reporters who were at the scene of the bus crash said they heard a loud bang, with some saying they saw a helicopter come down around a block away, sending plumes of smoke into the air. Aerial footage showed a large fire that appeared to involve shipping containers and cars, and the wreckage of a helicopter, whose mangled tail and rotors could be seen in the flames. Colleen Williams, a news anchor for NBC4, confirmed during emotional live coverage that the local news station's helicopter had gone down just before 7:00 pm (0200 GMT). "We knew it was a news chopper. We knew we'd lost contact with our people out there, and we've just received confirmation”, Williams said. NBC4 identified the victims aboard NewsChopper 4 as reporter Eliana Moreno and pilot George Marciniw. The third victim appeared to be a pedestrian on the ground when the crash happened. Dozens of firefighters were sent to the scene, the Los Angeles Fire Department said. "Four patients have been assessed. Three patients have been determined deceased on scene. One patient has been transported to a local hospital in unknown condition”, it said in a statement. (Bssnews)