The family members of Agustín Escobar and Mercè Camprubí, along with the Consulate General of Spain in New York, held a ceremony this morning in Jersey City to recognize the first anniversary of a helicopter crash in the Hudson River that claimed six lives.
By Dan Israel/ Hudson County View
The crash, which occurred near the Holland Tunnel in Jersey City, claimed six lives after the New York Helicopter Tours – which has since ceased operations – aircraft started “falling apart” in midair and did a nosedive into the water below.
The six lives claimed were 36-year-old Navy veteran pilot Seankese Johnson and the Escobar Camprubí family, including: 49-year-old Agustín; 39-year-old Mercè; 10-year-old Agus; 8-year-old Mercè; and 4-year-old Victor.
“For us, this is a gift because it’s a way to remember them,” Camprubí began.
“Last year, I had to travel alone because it was a really … accident that was shocking everyone … So for us, it’s important to come today and close a bit of the loop and come to the place where the accident was to honor them.”
The solemn gathering saw family members speak about the deceased, celebrating their lives as way to grieve their loss.
Camprubí thanked the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, of which there were a number of officials and police officers in attendance at the ceremony on the pier next to one of the Holland Tunnel Ventilation buildings.
According to Camprubí, it was cathartic for the entire family to travel from Barcelona, Spain to remember the loss of their loved ones. They chose to celebrate their life in addition to mourning their loss.
“As a family, we decided to go up instead of go down. It’s a moment where we can use this accident as an example for many people that are also suffering,” he added.
That is why Camprubí and the rest of the family announced they are supporting new federal legislation focused on helicopter safety, working with multiple congresspeople to enact change.
He clarified the family is not opposed to tourist helicopter flights, but in favor of increased safety.
“You can see that there are many helicopters, even today, running. For us, it’s not a problem. We’re not against anything … Even the family has been in one of these helicopters 10 years ago, so we are not against that,” said Camprubí. “
” … What we want is to increase security and to make sure that no one will suffer as we have suffered as a family … We hope this will take place soon to avoid any other problem than a fatal accident.”
Camprubí also announced the formation of The Foundation Escobar Camprubí, focusing on three main missions: smiling, life, and helping.
He said that supporting the legislation and holding the remembrance ceremonies are ways they decided to honor their lost loved ones as a family, before concluding with brief remarks in Spanish.
“Last year, they had this crash, but they were smiling at the moment of the accident. We are glad that they did not suffer that much because it was really a huge impact. And we want to keep people smiling instead of crying for this type of accident,” Camprubí concluded.
” … We want to promote life … Life is a privilege and we want to honor that with different actions… We will try to help with our example to other families. We are not an example of anything, but we want to honor Augustin, Merce, Agus, Merce, and Victor.”
According to the family, The Foundation Escobar Camprubí is already providing scholarship funds for children in the same school as their youngest.
There will also be a program to assist terminally ill youth, with the Escobar Camprubí family seeking to help others in the way their lost loved ones would.
In addition to a moment of silence, fire boats recognized the lives of those lost with a water salute as flowers were symbolically placed in the water.
After the event, Camprubí told HCV that with the World Cup on the horizon, it’s important to promote safety to avoid more accidents with tons of tourists headed to the area.
“There’s two ways of doing this: we go down and cry and say the problem to others, or we tackle the problem and find solutions and that’s what we’re doing,” he said.
“It’s tough to be here, but also it’s a good way to remember them and work for a change for all families so they will not suffer what we have suffered.”
While activists and legislators alike have been looking to ban tourist helicopter operations in Hudson County for over a decade, the movement sprung to life again after a fatal crash in the Hudson River last April.
However, by last July, no measurable action had been taken, prompting Hudson County Executive Craig Guy and U.S. Rep. Rob Menendez (D-8) to double down in search for a resolve more than three months after the fatal helicopter tragedy in the river.
This eventually culminated, in part, in the potential federal clampdown now supported by the surviving family.
“One year ago, our community was shaken by a tragic helicopter crash on the Hudson that claimed six lives,” Menendez said in a statement today.
“Since then, we’ve taken an all-hands approach with our local and state partners to find solutions that put the safety of our communities first.”
Yesterday, Menendez joined Reps. Jerrold Nadler (NY-12), Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11), Rep. Dan Goldman (NY-10), and Rep. Adriano Espaillat (NY-13) to introduce the Helicopter Safety and Parity Act ahead of the one-year anniversary.
The bipartisan bill mandate safety standards for helicopters that are, at a minimum, equivalent to airplanes.
The legislation seeks to achieve safety parity between airplanes and helicopters by mandating the development of new safety rules and standards, requiring the use of specific safety equipment, applying airline-equivalent maintenance standards, and ensuring strict enforcement and regular oversight.
The bill also provides funding for inspectors to implement the new safety regime, aiming for an approach that addresses safety gaps most likely to reduce the risk of a similar crash in the future.
