"Don't worry about that Richard, ring the news room!" [22nd Novermber 2011]
A helicopter has crashed in central Auckland while installing the Telecom Christmas tree. The seven-storey-high tree was being put up near the Te Wero Island bridge connecting the Viaduct and Wynyard Quarter on the waterfront.
The crew and pilot are OK, Telecom says. A St John ambulance spokesman said it was taking one person to Auckland City Hospital with minor to moderate injuries.
The accident around 10.30am was seen live on the TVNZ website as it was streaming the event.
Witness Steve Hall said the helicopter appeared to be trying to lift a tower near the drawbridge.
It then hovered below the tip of the tower where the blades clipped the connecting wire, threw the wire into the air and sent the helicopter into a spin before it crashed into the ground, with the cockpit pointing up into the air.
-youtube
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