A helicopter slammed into power lines before crashing into dry river bed near Santa Paula airport on Friday morning, killing the aircraft’s pilot and sparking a small brush fire. Lolita Lopez reports for the NBC4 News at 5 p.m. on Friday, May 23, 2014.
A Las Vegas man was killed Friday morning when a helicopter crashed in Santa Paula, fire officials said.
The victim was identified by the coroner as Philip Isaac Margolis, 42 (pictured).
Authorities responded to reports of a chopper down in the 900 block of Corporation Street about 10:30 a.m., according to the Ventura County Fire Department.
The search area was located about two to three miles from the Santa Paula Airport near Highway 126.
Power lines were taken down and a small brush fire was reported near the crash site, fire officials said.
"We don't know if the power lines were cause or effect," said Bill Nash of the Ventura County Fire Department.
The unidentified chopper crashed in a dry river bed, according to a statement from Ian Gregor of the Federal Aviation Administration.
Branding on the chopper indicated it belonged to the company Channel Islands Helicopters. Based out of Oxnard Airport, the company offers tours along the Pacific coast from Los Angeles to Santa Barbara.
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The heliopter was identified as a Robinson R22 helicopter, according to a tweet from the Ventura County Fire Department.
Santa Paula firefighters assisted in the search.
Details surrounding the crash were not immediately available.
