All five passengers aboard a helicopter that crashed into Manhattan's East River Sunday night have died, authorities said.

The red Eurocopter AS350, which officials said was operated by Liberty Helicopters and had been privately chartered for a photo shoot, apparently had engine failure.

The pilot -- who repeatedly radioed "May day! May day! and reported "engine failure" -- was the sole survivor. He was identified as 33-year-old Richard Vance of Danbury, Connecticut, and was treated and released from New York Presbyterian Hospital.

Vance "freed himself" and was cut out of a harness by personnel on an FDNY boat, Fire Department of New York City Commissioner Daniel Nigro said. The passengers were "tightly harnessed" in the helicopter, which was submerged upside down.

A 14-member team from the National Transportation Safety Board was headed to the scene Monday morning to investigate the crash.

A bystander captured video of the helicopter's descent into the water. The footage shows the final seconds as the chopper's propellers strike the glassy river's surface, its engine sputtering.

Li Muzi, Xinhua via Newscom

The helicopter hit the water between East 86th and East 96th streets near Manhattan's Upper East Side around 7 p.m., local and federal authorities confirmed. After impact, the chopper floated a mile or two south before emergency crews could bring it to a halt, officials said.

Darren Ornitz/Reuters

The pilot was experiencing engine failure just before he lost control, sources said. Vance told authorities he believed the engine had failed.

Sources told ABC's "Good Morning America" that the passengers were harnessed in tightly because they wanted the doors open to shoot photos.

"The pilot knew what to do because he wears that harness everyday," said ABC News aviation expert Steve Ganyard. "But these poor civilians out for a nice Sunday flight encountered something that was very, very difficult to survive."

He said military pilots are usually trained in what's called a "helo dunker," in which pilots practice getting out of harnesses while submerged in water and flipped upside down.

It was not clear if the passengers had received any training on how to escape the harness in an emergency. Liberty Helicopters did not immediately return requests from ABC News for comment.

Eyewitness Arineh Nazarian was dining at a restaurant when she spotted the red helicopter diving into the water.

"We were ... having dessert and noticed a red helicopter going full speed toward the water," she told ABC station WABC. "It almost looked very surreal, and next thing we know it's approaching the water slowly and then it just completely crashed."

@cnn @FoxNews just witnessed a helicopter crash into the East River .. hope everyone’s ok. Caught it all on tape! pic.twitter.com/saHOMTLR69 — JJ Magers (@JJmagers) March 11, 2018

Afterward, Nazarian said members of the Coast Guard arrived in an attempt to help the helicopter passengers.

"We're just hoping they survived," she added.

Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images

The Federal Aviation Administration tweeted that it was investigating the crash and the helicopter was "reportedly inverted in the water." It added that the National Transportation Safety Board would lead the investigation.

Police and divers braved the 50-foot-deep river, which was about 40 degrees Fahrenheit and moving at a speed of 4 mph on Sunday night.

Two of those who died were pronounced dead at the scene, Nigro said.

Jennifer Peltz/AP

"We're all still ... like really shaken up," another witness told ABC News. "There was a lot of screams. It was just really horrifying."

New York Police Department Commissioner James O'Neill said there were "dozens of calls" reporting the helicopter crash.

Soon after the helicopter went down, a series of dispatches captured in real-time over FDNY's scanners by Broadcastify.com broke down the initial emergency response.

John J. Magers/Reuters

"We got reports from NYPD that a helicopter is upside down in the water," a dispatcher stated.

Divers from both the NYPD and FDNY then raced into the water, according to the dispatcher.

O'Neill also praised the efforts of a private tugboat, which arrived on the scene before first responders.

"I want to thank the crew from the tugboat," O'Neill said. "They were the first boat on the scene."

He also confirmed that emergency crews arrived at the crash scene by both air and sea within five minutes.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio was briefed about the crash.

Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images

According to FlightRadar24.com, a website that tracks flight patterns, the helicopter -- tail number N350LH -- took off from Kearny, New Jersey.

Eric Adams Photography

It flew by the Statue of Liberty -- where someone aboard another chopper snapped photos of the chopper -- before heading toward the East River.

Eric Adams Photography

It flew over the Brooklyn Bridge, according to the radar path, before losing contact and crashing in the river.

Eric Adams Photography

The National Transportation Safety Board is sending members to investigate, and is expected to hold a news conference on Monday.

A Eurocopter AS350 went down in the East River near Roosevelt Island in #NYC at 7pm today. The helicopter reportedly is inverted in the water. Local authorities will confirm the number of people on board, their names and conditions. The #FAA is investigating. — The FAA (@FAANews) March 11, 2018

Tuan-Lung Wang/Twitter

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

Calls to Liberty Helicopter seeking comment on the crash were not immediately returned.

ABC News' Karma Allen, Josh Margolin and Mark Crudele contributed to this report.</s>iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Two people were killed when a private helicopter crashed into the East River Sunday evening, authorities said.

The red Eurocopter AS350 helicopter was carrying six passengers when it went down, police sources said. One of the passengers was seriously injured after being pulled from the water, sources said.

A bystander captured the helicopter’s descent into the water on video. The footage shows the final seconds as the chopper’s propellers strike the glassy river’s surface, its engine sputtering.

The helicopter hit the cold water at East 96th Street on Manhattan’s Upper East Side neighborhood about 7 p.m., local and federal authorities later confirmed.

The pilot who was experiencing engine failure, sources said.

The Federal Aviation Administration tweeted that it was investigating the crash and added that the helicopter is “reportedly inverted in the water.” It added that the National Transportation Safety Board would lead the investigation.

New York City’s NYPD and FDNY confirmed that there were sending emergency personnel into the area near East 90th Street in Manhattan.</s>Police say two people are dead after a private helicopter crashed into the East River on Sunday night.The helicopter reportedly crashed near 89th Street in Manhattan around 7 p.m. It is unclear where the helicopter was coming from or if there were any distress calls.One person has also been removed from the water in serious condition. Police sources tell ABC News that there were at least six people on board the helicopter at the time of the crash."We were having dinner and we noticed a red helicopter going full speed towards the water. It almost looked very surreal and next thing we know it's approaching the water slowly and then it just completely crashed and then sunk. Immediate reaction was to call 911," said eyewitness Arineh Nazarian.The strong currents in the East River are making recovery efforts difficult.The NTSB says they will be investigating.NYC Ferry service on the Astoria and East River route is currently suspended until further notice.----------</s>All five passengers have been killed after a helicopter crashed into the East River off Manhattan.

There were six people on the Eurocopter AS350, which was registered to Liberty Helicopters and was being used for a private charter photo shoot.

It went down near Gracie Mansion, the mayoral residence near the northern end of Roosevelt Island, at about 7.00pm local time.

The sixth person - the pilot - freed himself and was rescued by a passing tugboat, according to police. He was taken to hospital but is in a good condition.

Witnesses had described seeing one person emerge from the helicopter and wave their hands for help.

Daniel Nigro, Commissioner of the New York City Fire Department, said the helicopter had been upside down and "completely submerged" in 50 feet of extremely cold water.

The passengers had been tightly harnessed and the harnesses had to be cut to free them, he said.

"The divers worked very quickly, as fast as they could. Everyone worked very hard."

Xinran Jiang, who lives on Roosevelt Island with her husband, said they saw a red helicopter rapidly descending near the north end of the island at about 7.08pm.

She told the New York Times that the helicopter showed no obvious signs of trouble before going into the river.

"It almost looked like it was landing. It wasn't moving fast."

"Then the next minute, it was diving into the river," Ms Jiang said.

Brianna Jesme (22), an Upper East Side resident who witnessed the crash, told Reuters TV: "It kind of hit sideways and just flipped over."

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said: "Our thoughts and hope for safe recovery are with those who were aboard.

"We are thankful for our first responders at the scene."

The helicopter has been recovered and towed to a nearby pier.

It is not the first helicopter crash in the area - In October 2011, a crash in the East River killed a tourist and injured three others.

In 2009, a sightseeing tour collided with a small private plane over the Hudson River, killing nine people.

Another helicopter crashed into the Hudson River in July 2007 with no casualties, and two helicopters crashed into the East River during the same week in June 2005, with more than a dozen people injured.</s>Yellow buoys that a New York police officer said are suspending a helicopter that crashed on the East River float next to a NYPD police boat at a pier in New York on Sunday, March 11, 2018. The helicopter crashed into New York City’s East River Sunday night and flipped upside down in the water, killing at least a few people aboard and leaving some others in critical condition, officials said. (Andres Kudacki/AP)

A privately chartered helicopter doing a photo shoot crashed into New York City’s East River on Sunday night and flipped upside down in the water, killing all five passengers aboard, officials said.

A spokesman for the NYPD confirmed the deaths to The Associated Press early Monday.

Video taken by a bystander and posted on Twitter shows the red helicopter land hard in the water and then capsize, its rotors slapping at the water.

The helicopter went down near Gracie Mansion, the mayoral residence. One person, the pilot, freed himself and was rescued by a tugboat, officials said.

The passengers were recovered by police and fire department divers, who had to remove them from tight harnesses while they were upside down, Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said.

“It took awhile for the drivers to get these people out. They worked very quickly as fast as they could,” Nigro said. “It was a great tragedy that we had here.”

Witnesses on a waterfront esplanade near where the aircraft went down said the helicopter was flying noisily, then suddenly dropped into the water and quickly submerged. But the pilot appeared on the surface, holding onto a flotation device as a tugboat and then police boats approached.

“It’s cold water. It was sinking really fast,” Mary Lee, 66, told the New York Post. “By the time we got out here, we couldn’t see it. It was underwater.”

Celia Skyvaril, 23, told the Daily News that she could see a person on what looked like a yellow raft or float screaming and yelling for help.

News footage showed one victim being loaded into an ambulance while emergency workers gave him chest compressions.

A bystander, Susan Larkin, told The Associated Press that she went down to see rescue boats in the river and a police helicopter circling overhead, hovering low over the water.

“You could clearly see they were searching,” she said.

A Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman said the Eurocopter AS350 went down just after 7 p.m. The aircraft was owned by Liberty Helicopters, a company that offers both private charters and sightseeing tours popular with tourists. A phone message left with the company was not immediately returned.

The skies over New York constantly buzz with helicopters carrying tourists, businesspeople, traffic reporters, medical teams and others. Crashes are not unheard of.

In 2009, a sightseeing helicopter of the same model and operated by the same company as the one in Sunday’s wreck collided with a small, private plane over the Hudson River, killing nine people, including a group of Italian tourists.

A crash in October 2011 in the East River killed a British woman visiting the city for her 40th birthday. Two other passengers died weeks later as a result of their injuries.

A helicopter on a sightseeing tour of Manhattan crashed into the Hudson River in July 2007, shaking up the eight people aboard but injuring no one. In June 2005, two helicopters crashed into the East River in the same week. One injured eight people including some banking executives. The other hit the water shortly after takeoff on a sightseeing flight, injuring six tourists and the pilot.

Nigro and Police Commissioner James O’Neill said the rescue operation Sunday took place in a 4 mph current in water about 50 feet (15 metres) deep, under challenging conditions.

The cause of the crash is unknown. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.

Officials did not immediately release the names of the pilot or passengers or say how the passengers died.

The helicopter was recovered in the rescue operation and towed to a pier.

This story has been corrected to show that three people died from the 2011 crash, including two who died in the weeks after the crash.</s>(AP Photo/Andres Kudacki). Yellow buoys that a New York police officer said are suspending a helicopter that crashed on the East River float next to a NYPD police boat at a pier in New York on Sunday, March 11, 2018. The helicopter crashed into New Yor...

(WNYW via AP). In this image made from video provided by WNYW, New York City Fire Department Commissioner Daniel Nigro speaks during a press conference a deadly helicopter crash in New York on Sunday, March 11, 2018. A helicopter crashed into New York ...

(WNYW via AP). In this image made from video provided by WNYW, New York City Police Commissioner James O'Neill speaks during a press conference a deadly helicopter crash in New York on Sunday, March 11, 2018. A helicopter crashed into New York City's E...

(New York City Police Department via AP). This image made from video provided by the New York City Police Department shows the scene of a helicopter crash in the East River in New York on Sunday, March 11, 2018. A Federal Aviation Administration spokes...

(AP Photo/Jennifer Peltz). First responders carry a person to an ambulance after a helicopter crashed into the East River along New York on Sunday, March 11, 2018. A Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman said Sunday the Eurocopter AS350 went down...

NEW YORK (AP) - All five passengers aboard a helicopter that crashed into New York City's East River were confirmed dead early Monday morning by a NYPD spokesman.

The pilot was able to escape the Sunday night crash after the aircraft flipped upside down in the water, officials said. He was rescued by a tugboat.

The helicopter, a private charter hired for a photo shoot, went down near Gracie Mansion, the mayoral residence.

Video taken by a bystander and posted on Twitter shows the red helicopter land hard in the water and then capsize, its rotors slapping at the water.

The passengers were recovered by police and fire department divers, who had to remove them from tight harnesses while they were upside down, Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said.

"It took awhile for the divers to get these people out. They worked very quickly as fast as they could," Nigro said. "It was a great tragedy that we had here."

Witnesses on a waterfront esplanade near where the aircraft went down said the helicopter was flying noisily, then suddenly dropped into the water and quickly submerged. But the pilot appeared on the surface, holding onto a flotation device as a tugboat and then police boats approached.

"It's cold water. It was sinking really fast," Mary Lee, 66, told the New York Post. "By the time we got out here, we couldn't see it. It was underwater."

Celia Skyvaril, 23, told the Daily News that she could see a person on what looked like a yellow raft or float screaming and yelling for help.

News footage showed one victim being loaded into an ambulance while emergency workers gave him chest compressions.

A bystander, Susan Larkin, told The Associated Press that she went down to see rescue boats in the river and a police helicopter circling overhead, hovering low over the water.

"You could clearly see they were searching," she said.

A Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman said the Eurocopter AS350 went down just after 7 p.m. The aircraft was owned by Liberty Helicopters, a company that offers both private charters and sightseeing tours popular with tourists. A phone message left with the company was not immediately returned.

The skies over New York constantly buzz with helicopters carrying tourists, businesspeople, traffic reporters, medical teams and others. Crashes are not unheard of.

In 2009, a sightseeing helicopter of the same model and operated by the same company as the one in Sunday's wreck collided with a small, private plane over the Hudson River, killing nine people, including a group of Italian tourists.

A crash in October 2011 in the East River killed a British woman visiting the city for her 40th birthday. Three other passengers were injured.

A helicopter on a sightseeing tour of Manhattan crashed into the Hudson River in July 2007, shaking up the eight people aboard but injuring no one. In June 2005, two helicopters crashed into the East River in the same week. One injured eight people including some banking executives. The other hit the water shortly after takeoff on a sightseeing flight, injuring six tourists and the pilot.

Nigro and Police Commissioner James O'Neill said the rescue operation Sunday took place in a 4 mph current in water about 50 feet (15 meters) deep, under challenging conditions.

The cause of the crash is unknown. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.

Officials did not immediately release the names of the pilot or passengers.

The helicopter was recovered in the rescue operation and towed to a pier.

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>NEW YORK CITY -- A helicopter crashed into New York City's East River around sundown Sunday and flipped on its side, killing at least two people.

A spokesman for the mayor's office, Eric Phillips, confirmed the fatalities on Twitter. At least one person was rescued from the water, he said.

Coast Guard officials said there were six people on board. Five were recovered by police and fire department divers. The pilot was able to free himself. Three were taken to the hospital in critical condition.

The helicopter was a private charter for a photo shoot.

Video taken by a bystander and posted on Twitter shows a red helicopter land hard in the water and then tip over as its rotors slap at the water.

The helicopter, a model used by tourist companies, went down near Gracie Mansion, the mayoral residence. A small armada of rescue boats searched for survivors.

Witnesses told local media that the helicopter appeared to fill with water quickly.

"Its' cold water. It was sinking really fast," Mary Lee, 66, told the New York Post. "By the time we got out here, we couldn't see it. It was under water."

Witnesses described seeing at least one person emerge from the helicopter and wave his or her hands for help.

A Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman said the Eurocopter AS350 went down just after 7 p.m.

The skies over New York constantly buzz with helicopters carrying tourists, businesspeople, traffic reporters, medical teams and others. Crashes are not uncommon.

A crash in October 2011 in the East River killed a British woman visiting the city for her 40th birthday. Three other passengers were injured.

A helicopter on a sightseeing tour of Manhattan crashed into the Hudson River in July 2007, shaking up the eight people aboard but injuring no one. In June 2005, two helicopters crashed into the East River in the same week. One injured eight people including some banking executives. The other hit the water shortly after takeoff on a sightseeing flight, injuring six tourists and the pilot.</s>All five passengers aboard a helicopter that crashed into New York City's East River were confirmed dead early Monday morning by a NYPD spokesman.

The pilot was able to escape the Sunday night crash after the aircraft flipped upside down in the water, officials said. He was rescued by a tugboat.

The helicopter, a private charter hired for a photo shoot, went down near Gracie Mansion, the mayoral residence.

Video taken by a bystander and posted on Twitter shows the red helicopter land hard in the water and then capsize, its rotors slapping at the water.

The passengers were recovered by police and fire department divers, who had to remove them from tight harnesses while they were upside down, Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said.

"It took awhile for the divers to get these people out. They worked very quickly as fast as they could," Nigro said. "It was a great tragedy that we had here."

Witnesses on a waterfront esplanade near where the aircraft went down said the helicopter was flying noisily, then suddenly dropped into the water and quickly submerged. But the pilot appeared on the surface, holding onto a flotation device as a tugboat and then police boats approached.

"It's cold water. It was sinking really fast," Mary Lee, 66, told the New York Post. "By the time we got out here, we couldn't see it. It was underwater."

Celia Skyvaril, 23, told the Daily News that she could see a person on what looked like a yellow raft or float screaming and yelling for help.

News footage showed one victim being loaded into an ambulance while emergency workers gave him chest compressions.

A bystander, Susan Larkin, told The Associated Press that she went down to see rescue boats in the river and a police helicopter circling overhead, hovering low over the water.

"You could clearly see they were searching," she said.

A Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman said the Eurocopter AS350 went down just after 7 p.m. The aircraft was owned by Liberty Helicopters, a company that offers both private charters and sightseeing tours popular with tourists. A phone message left with the company was not immediately returned.

The skies over New York constantly buzz with helicopters carrying tourists, businesspeople, traffic reporters, medical teams and others. Crashes are not unheard of.

In 2009, a sightseeing helicopter of the same model and operated by the same company as the one in Sunday's wreck collided with a small, private plane over the Hudson River, killing nine people, including a group of Italian tourists.

A crash in October 2011 in the East River killed a British woman visiting the city for her 40th birthday. Three other passengers were injured.

A helicopter on a sightseeing tour of Manhattan crashed into the Hudson River in July 2007, shaking up the eight people aboard but injuring no one. In June 2005, two helicopters crashed into the East River in the same week. One injured eight people including some banking executives. The other hit the water shortly after takeoff on a sightseeing flight, injuring six tourists and the pilot.

Nigro and Police Commissioner James O'Neill said the rescue operation Sunday took place in a 4 mph current in water about 50 feet (15 meters) deep, under challenging conditions.

The cause of the crash is unknown. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.

Officials did not immediately release the names of the pilot or passengers.

The helicopter was recovered in the rescue operation and towed to a pier.</s>A chartered helicopter carrying a group of tourists plunged into the East River Sunday evening, killing two passengers in a devastating crash that was caught on video.

Three passengers were also hurt, and listed in critical condition. The pilot escaped alive, and emerged from the frigid waters desperately yelling for help.

Footage of the deadly incident, which was posted on social media even before the deaths were confirmed, showed the copter progressively losing altitude until it slammed into the water, bounded and tilted over before it sank.

For a few seconds the rotors sliced into the water until the helicopter went under with six people, including the pilot, still trapped inside.

"There were six people on the helicopter,” said Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro. “The pilot freed himself. The other five did not. The police, fire divers entered the water and removed the other five."

The FDNY responded within five minutes, the commissioner said.

"The pilot is okay,” Nigro said. “He went to the hospital to be checked out, but he was able to get out."

Officials said the helicopter went down in about 50 feet of water in the middle of the East River, near the Upper East Side by E. 89th St., not far from Carl Schurz Park and Roosevelt Island, officials said.. The current was moving at 4 mph.

"It took a while for the divers to get these people out. They worked very quickly, as fast as they could.”

Nigro said the harnesses designed to be worn for safety may have actually hindered the passengers’ escape. First responders were not only operating in frigid water, but they were working against time inside a helicopter that, by the time they arrived had turned upside down.

"The pilot freed himself, was taken by one of our fire boats ashore and was out on an ambulance,” Nigro added.

“One of the most difficult parts of the operation we’re told is the five people besides the pilot were all tightly harnessed so these harnesses had to be removed in order to get these folks off of this helicopter which was upside down at the time."

Officials said the chopper was owned by New Jersey-based Liberty Helicopter Tours, and that it was chartered for a photo shoot.

The Kearny sightseeing operation was involved with a deadly midair collision over the Hudson River in August 2009 that claimed the lives of six people, including the pilot. Three more people were killed on the single-engine aircraft it hit.

Investigators concluded that the helicopter was flying too high and the pilot of the Piper PA-32R was distracted by a Teterboro Airport dispatcher and failed to see the chopper, according to National Transportation Safety Board records.

In 2007, a helicopter with the same company crashed into the Hudson during a tour of the city. An off-duty EMT on board the aircraft helped the passengers escape.

Officials said it was too early to determine what caused Sunday’s crash.

Amateur video shows the commercial helicopter crashing into the water, its rotor still spinning, and then overturn.

"Just witnessed a helicopter crash into the East River ... hope everyone's ok. Caught it all on tape!" wrote Twitter user @JJmagers, who posted the video online just after 7:15 p.m.

Brianna Jesme, 22, who witnessed the afternoon crash, said, "It sort of landed sideways and then it flipped over. There was a good solid minute that no one came out of the helicopter."

She added, "We didn't know if it was supposed to be happening. Once it went down we realized that it wasn't supposed to happen."

The NYPD's Aviation and Harbor Unit rushed to the scene, as did the FDNY's Harbor Unit, sending divers to search for the helicopter's occupants.

A privately-operated tugboat managed to rescue at least one person, according to U.S. Coast Guard officials, while police and fire recovered five more. Their condition was not immediately known Sunday night.

"It was completely submerged," another eyewitness Celia Skvaril, 23, said. "We didn't see the helicopter anymore and then a yellow raft popped up and again we didn't see or hear anyone until we saw a person on top of the raft screaming and yelling for help and waving."

"It was a pretty hard hit and then it flipped over."

Manhattan resident Tuan-Lung Wang saw the scene unfold from his window.

“Some unexpected scene to see when you have a east river view in your room,” Wang tweeted. “20 min ago, my wife and I were chilling in our room enjoying the river view. Then we saw a flying object gradually landing on water. We thought it’s a helicopter, but we were not sure. So we called 911.”</s>HELICOPTER CRASH VIDEO

East River, Manhattan, NY

Reports of 5 people on board. 

Video captured by @JJmagerspic.twitter.com/hkvmIm7VMH
A helicopter crash in Manhattan's East River kills five people.