Hudson River helicopter crash victims honored at wreath-laying ceremony in New York City
The six victims of Thursday's deadly Hudson River helicopter crash were honored Saturday at an emotional wreath-laying ceremony at Pier 40 in Lower Manhattan.
Pilot Sean Johnson, 36, was taking five passengers – 49-year-old Agustín Escobar Canadas, 39-year-old Mercè Camprubí Montal and their three children Víctor, Agustín and Mercedes – on a sightseeing tour in a Bell 206 helicopter when, about 20 minutes into the flight, the helicopter's main rotor detached and the aircraft plunged upside down into the river. All six were killed.
The National Transportation Safety Board is continuing its investigation into what caused the crash. They resumed their search for parts of the aircraft Saturday.
"They left together"
Joan Camprubí, the brother of Mercè Camprubí Montal, spoke at Saturday's ceremony.
"They left together. They left without suffering, and they left with a smile on their faces and that's important for us. As a family, we want to remind and honor their happiness and their smile forever," he said.
Officials say Escobar Canadas, who was an executive at the tech company Siemens, was on a business trip in the area, and his family joined him from Spain to celebrate ahead of what would have been Mercedes' 9th birthday on Friday.
"The Escobar-Camprubí family was a really loved family," Camprubí said. "We want to move the bodies as soon as possible home, back home with all the family to rest in peace together in our place."
"As New Yorkers, we stand united with this family during this moment of grief. And their grief is our grief," Mayor Eric Adams said.
Pilot Sean Johnson remembered as giving, humble person
Johnson was a Navy veteran, who served from 2006 to 2018.
"He was a giving person. He was very gregarious, always smiling, very humble. Always super, super humble. That was Sean," former Navy SEAL Remi Adeleke said.
Adeleke describes himself as not only a mentor to Johnson, but as a brother during their time in the Navy.
"I would always tell him like, 'Hey brother, look at me, where I came from and look at what I achieved. If I could do it, you could do it,'" he said.
Johnson's loved ones say he recently moved to New York City, and that he always dreamed of being a pilot. That dream became a reality years ago.
"Every time he graduated to the next level of flight school, any time he'd pass a test, he would send me a picture or send me a video and be like 'Look at what I did, Remi!'" Adeleke said.
Adeleke says he's helping Johnson's wife navigating this process as best he can.
