‘I can’t find my dad’: 911 calls of fatal chopper crash near Miami tell painful story
911 calls and air traffic control audio from people who saw a helicopter crash into a Miami-Dade canal describe the tragedy of a daughter desperately trying to save the life of her 71-year-old father.
Witnesses told authorities that Jordan Ann Zanzuri, 27, the pilot’s daughter, swam to safety Wednesday before she directed Miami-Dade Fire Rescue divers to the submerged wreckage. Clement Zanzuri was thought to have been trapped inside his Hughes 369 helicopter that plunged into the canal three miles west of Miami Executive Airport.
It’s not known how long the pilot remained underwater, but Miami-Dade police have said county paramedics tried to resuscitate him before he was declared dead at Jackson Memorial South Trauma Center.
Frustrated 911 caller reporting helicopter crash
A man who said he lives near the site appeared to be the first one to call 911 at 1:04 p.m., according to phone recordings released by police.
“A helicopter fell in a canal and the pilot is inside,” he says in Spanish. “It already went underwater.”
The caller grows increasingly frustrated as the 911 dispatcher relies on an interpreter to understand. About 4 1/2 minutes pass after the 911 call is placed. “By the time you send someone, the one who is underwater is dead,” the caller says.
The dispatcher tells him that help is already on the way.
READ MORE: Woman helped find her father after helicopter crashed into canal near Miami, cops say
Despite the pilot’s daughter being hurt and in pain, she had left one of her boots near the edge of the canal so rescuers could find her father, the caller tells the dispatcher. But the boot is nowhere to be found.
Confirming reports from police, the caller tells the dispatcher that the helicopter had sunk so deep he could no longer see it. He is then heard speaking with other people there. Around 15 minutes after dialing 911, he tells the dispatcher he could see the first police vehicle arriving. Shortly thereafter, he says a police helicopter is flying above the scene.
‘It looks like there is something in the water’
Bystanders weren’t the only ones trying to alert authorities to the crash. Air traffic control channels were buzzing with chatter about the helicopter going down.
About 20 minutes after the first 911 call, a person asks over the air traffic control channel whether the “tower,” which monitors and OKs flights, has heard about a helicopter going down.
“We are seeing some bubbles directly in the middle of the canal,” they said. “I think there is still one stuck inside, one out. We got eyes on the helicopter submerged.”
‘It’s a pilot and his daughter’
At least two more people call 911 at 1:16 p.m., including a woman familiar with air traffic terminology in contact with the pilot’s wife. She says that the daughter has talked with her mom on the phone.
”It’s a pilot and his daughter,” she says. “She can’t find him.”
The call lasts about five minutes.
Pilot’s daughter speaks with 911 dispatcher
A minute after the woman familiar with air traffic calls 911, another Spanish-speaking man at the scene calls and is connected to a dispatcher. He initially gives the wrong location but the issue is resolved within minutes. The dispatcher also speaks Spanish.
He tells the dispatcher that a helicopter had crashed and that people are in the water.
“We found a woman,” he says in Spanish to the dispatcher. “We are looking for more people.”
Then he hands his cellphone to the pilot’s daughter. She sounds distressed and in pain. After trying to move, she groans, telling the dispatcher her back and neck hurt.
“I can’t find my dad,” she tells the dispatcher.
Federal agencies investigate helicopter crash
The Zanzuris were heading to Miami Executive Airport, 12800 SW 145th Ave., from the Fort Myers area when their chopper crashed after 1 p.m. Wednesday in a canal near Krome Avenue, police said. Witnesses told police they saw the helicopter spinning and falling before it plunged into the water.
The canal was so deep that first responders initially couldn’t see the wreckage, Detective Alvaro Zabaleta, a police spokesperson, told reporters near the site Wednesday. After the pilot’s daughter swam to safety, she told rescuers where to look for her father.
“That’s when divers went into the water to search for an additional person,” Zabaleta said.
READ MORE: Man died, woman rescued after helicopter plunged into Miami-Dade canal, officials say
The pilot and his daughter were taken to a hospital. She remained stable as of Thursday, police said.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.
The helicopter was removed from the canal early Thursday afternoon. The wreckage was taken to an undisclosed location to determine the cause of the crash, the NTSB said.
A preliminary report will be available within 30 days. A probable cause of the crash along with any contributing factors will be detailed in the final report, which is expected in 12 to 24 months.
Witnesses or those who have other information that could be relevant to the investigation, including footage of the crash, are asked to email the NTSB at witness@ntsb.gov.
