Authorities embrace while working near the scene of a deadly helicopter crash near Charlottesville, Va., on Saturday Aug. 12, 2017.

Shelby Lum / Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP</s>CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) – Police say a Virginia State Police helicopter has crashed near Charlottesville, Virginia, where violent clashes erupted at the site of a white nationalist rally. Two troopers were reportedly killed in the crash.

Virginia State Police said Saturday that the helicopter crashed in a wooded area near a home. No one on the ground was injured. Police said they are investigating the cause of the crash.</s>(ABC) — Two people are dead after a helicopter crashed seven miles southwest of Charlottesville, Virginia, Saturday afternoon, the Virginia State Police said.

The National Transportation Safety Board and Virginia State Police are investigating the crash, which took place in a wooded area. Further details were not immediately available.

This is a breaking news story. Check back for more.</s>{"id":49183225,"title":"2 dead in helicopter crash near Charlottesville, Virginia","duration":"1:06","description":"Two people are dead after a helicopter crashed seven miles southwest of Charlottesville, Virginia, Saturday afternoon, the Virginia State Police said.","url":"/US/video/dead-helicopter-crash-charlottesville-virginia-49183225","section":"US","mediaType":"default"}</s>ALBEMARLE COUNTY, Va. — Two people were killed after a Virginia State Police helicopter crashed Saturday afternoon near Charlottesville, according to WJLA.

The crash happened around 5 p.m. in a wooded area on Old Farm Road, The Daily Progress reports.

Neighbors say the helicopter hovered low before landing in the woods.

New York Times metro reporter Brian M. Rosenthal confirmed the crash on Twitter.

One person was killed Saturday and 19 were hurt when a speeding car slammed into another car that was navigating through a throng of counter-protesters in Charlottesville, where a “Unite the Right” rally of white nationalist and other right-wing groups was to take place.

Virginia’s governor had earlier declared an emergency, and police worked to disperse hundreds of protesters in the college town after clashes broke out ahead of the rally’s scheduled noon start.

Saturday’s rally was the latest event drawing white nationalists and right-wing activists from across the country to this Democratic-voting town — a development precipitated by the city’s decision to remove symbols of its Confederate past.

Additional details about the crash are unknown.</s>Two people are dead after a helicopter crashed seven miles southwest of Charlottesville, Virginia, Saturday afternoon, the Virginia State Police said.

The National Transportation Safety Board and Virginia State Police are investigating the crash, which took place in a wooded area. Further details were not immediately available.

This is a breaking news story. Check back for more.</s>VIRGINIA – Virginia State Police say two people are dead after a police helicopter crashed Saturday afternoon.

Shortly before 5 p.m., a helicopter crashed in a wooded area near a residence on Old Farm Road.

Police say two people have died as a result of the crash.

No one on the ground was injured.

Officials say the crash happened not far from Charlottesville, Virginia, where a “Unite the Right” rally of white nationalists and other right-wing groups is taking place.

A vehicle had plowed through part of the crowd at the rally earlier Saturday afternoon. Three people have died and nearly 20 people are injured.

The driver of the vehicle has been taken into custody.</s>We're so, so sad to have to report this — more deaths are coming in from this weekend's horrific white nationalist demonstrations in Charlottesville, Virginia.

On Saturday evening, two Virginia State Police troopers were killed after their helicopter crashed in Albemarle County near Charlottesville.

The crash took place while they were performing duties monitoring crowd control and public safety issues concerning Saturday's white supremacist demonstrations in the city.

The two troopers have been identified as H. Jay Cullen of Midlothian, Virginia, and Berke M.M. Bates of Quinton, Virginia, both of the Richmond area.

Trooper-Pilot Cullen was 48 years old. Trooper-Pilot Bates was 40.

According to Susan Rowland, the Virginia State Police Public Relations Coordinator, the pair's helicopter sustained some kind of malfunction and crashed in a wooded area near a home just before 5:00 p.m. local time, and added:

Our thoughts and prayers are with both State Troopers, who died trying to protect Charlottesville from hate, bigotry, and violence.</s>A helicopter just crashed in #Charlottesville what on earth is going on, praying it wasn't fatal

Two state police officers died as they were trying to help with public safety when their helicopter crashed into a wooded area. A third person, who has not yet been identified, died when a car drove into a crowd on anti-racist protesters.

Lieutenant H Jay Cullen, 48, of Midlothian, Virginia, was one of the victims who died in the helicopter crash, officials said.

He was a 1994 graduate of the Virginia State Police Academy, and first joined the Virginia State Police Aviation Unit in 1999, according to a statement issued by Virginia State Police. He is survived by his wife and two sons.

The other victim was identified as Trooper-Pilot Berke M.M. Bates of Quinton, Virginia. Both men died at the scene.

This image was shared by HOVA Flight Services in 2016 and says it shows Berke Bates (left) earning his Private Pilot Certificate with his examiner.

Bates would've turned 41 on Sunday, the state police said in its statement. He graduated from the Virginia State Police Academy in August 2004, and transferred to the Aviation Unit as a trooper-pilot in July. He is survived by his wife, a son and a daughter.

“Our state police and law enforcement family at-large are mourning this tragic outcome to an already challenging day,” Colonel W. Steven Flaherty, Virginia State Police Superintendent, said in the statement. “Lieutenant Cullen was a highly-respected professional aviator and Trooper-Pilot Bates was a welcome addition to the Aviation Unit, after a distinguished assignment as a special agent with our Bureau of Criminal Investigation. Their deaths are a tremendous loss to our agency and the Commonwealth.”</s>The Virginia state police on Saturday were mourning the loss of a pilot and a trooper-pilot killed in the crash of a helicopter that had been monitoring a white nationalist and "alt right" rally in Charlottesville.

"Our state police and law enforcement family at-large are mourning this tragic outcome to an already challenging day," Virginia State Police Superintendent Col. W. Steven Flaherty said in a statement after the crash shortly before 5 p.m.

The pilot of the Bell 407 helicopter, Lt. H. Jay Cullen, 48, of Midlothian, and Trooper-Pilot Berke M.M. Bates, 40, of Quinton, died at the scene of the crash southwest of Charlottesville, the state police said.

The pilots were helping with law enforcement efforts in Charlottesville, where a rally of white nationalists and "alt right" groups turned violent, before the crash, state police said.

There is no indication of foul play being a factor in the crash, state police said. The crash is under investigation by state police, the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board, state police said.

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe said both officers "were our close friends and trusted members of our team" and he said he was deeply saddened by their loss.

"Jay has flown us across the commonwealth for more than three and a half years. Berke was devoted to our entire family as part of our Executive Protective Unit team for the past three years," McAuliffe said in a statement.

"This is a devastating loss for their families, the Virginia State Police, and the entire commonwealth," McAuliffe said. "Our hearts go out to their wives and children, and we stand by to support them during this difficult time. These heroes were a part of our family and we are simply heartbroken."

At the rally, a 32-year-old woman was killed and 19 other people were injured after a car plowed into a group of counter-protesters.

Police arrested the suspected driver, James Alex Fields Jr., 20, of Ohio, and said he is charged with second-degree murder, three counts of malicious wounding and other counts.

Virginia State Police said Cullen was a "highly-respected professional aviator" who joined the aviation unit in 1999, state police said. He is survived by his wife and two sons.

Bates, who would have turned 41 on Sunday, joined the unit in July after serving as a special agent with the bureau of criminal investigation, and is survived by his wife and a son and a daughter, state police said.

"Their deaths are a tremendous loss to our agency and the Commonwealth," Flaherty said.

President Donald Trump on Twitter expressed his condolences: "Deepest condolences to the families & fellow officers of the VA State Police who died today. You're all among the best this nation produces."
A Virginia State Police helicopter monitoring protests crashes, killing two officers onboard.