Houston dad was one of four killed when night tour helicopter crashed into radio tower

A carpenter and 2 of his family were killed erstwhile a circuit helicopter exploded into flames erstwhile it collapsed into a power tower.

Cesar Lerma, 49, was confirmed dormant on pinch nan pilot, different big and a child, aft nan clang successful eastbound Houston astir 7.50pm connected Sunday.

The National Helicopter Solutions craft was taking nan trio connected a nighttime circuit of Houston erstwhile it deed nan building 600ft successful nan aerial astatine 108mph.

Lerma has 3 children - Darin, 23, Aiven, 18, and a nine-year-old son, on pinch an ex-wife. It was not known which, aliases any, of them was successful nan helicopter.

Mayor John Whitmire said the Robinson R44 chopper took disconnected from Ellington Airport and collapsed adjacent Engelke Street and Ennis Streets successful nan Second Ward. 

Officials made a bleak petition of adjacent residents, asking them to look for some fallen chopper parts and quality remains erstwhile they woke up successful nan morning. 

Lerma owned Pro-Carpentry successful Pearland since 2021, remodeling kitchens and bathrooms in confederate Houston.

Local builder Garrett Kauffman mourned Lerma online, calling him a 'master of his craft' who precocious thief his institution pinch a location renovation.

'Carpentry was successful a people of his ain building nan champion civilization cabinets I've seen successful years. It is simply a trade that nan result is successful nan details,' he wrote.

'He often built doors we needed that nan RTA vendor could not supply. I americium proud to person known him. Wished I would person been a amended friend. He loved his boys. 

'I'll miss you Cesar! Thank you for your patience and your soft spoken personality.'

Kauffman said he believed it was Lerma's ex-wife and youngest boy who were killed pinch him, but that has not been confirmed.

Houston Police Chief Noe Diaz said nan clang was believed to beryllium an accident. The National Transportation Safety Board and nan Federal Aviation Administration are investigating.

Diaz noted that victims' families still person to beryllium notified earlier they tin merchandise their identities.

He besides said that nan investigation will apt return immoderate clip and aggregate agencies owed to its size.  

'It will beryllium a ample investigation because of nan expanse of nan accident,' he said. 

Authorities opportunity that it appeared nary 1 connected nan crushed was killed aliases wounded from nan crash.

Whitmire believed it would return respective days to cleanable up from nan crash. The segment has been blocked disconnected from nan public. 

'This is simply a tragic arena tonight, it's a tragic nonaccomplishment of life,' he added. 

He said nan full metropolis was fortunate nan clang wasn't moreover worse, arsenic location was a butane vessel nearby. 

'We saw this agleam ray flying toward nan church,' Marco Perez, who was astatine an outdoor performance nearby, said.

'That ray turned into an orangish reddish fireball,' he told nan Houston Chronicle. 

Perez and his grandson said that nan metallic that fell to nan crushed resembled 'spaghetti.' 

The occurrence - which burned astir 100-200 yards of writer successful nan contiguous area - was put retired by astir 9.30pm, though immoderate homes successful nan area remained without powerfulness for hours afterwards.