Helicopter Has Crashed in the East River Bearing Five Passengers [Updated]

According to reports, a helicopter has gone down in the East River. NYPD divers have rescued four people and one is reportedly unconscious -- we haven't heard reports of the fifth person's status. Police spokesman Paul Browne told the AP that the private Bell 206 helicopter plunged into the river off of 34th Street and that it was taking off from a trying to land on a heliport in the area when it crashed.

The helicopter is commercial. There are reportedly seven boats involved in the rescue effort.

Our Michelle Anderson is heading over to the scene now and she'll have updates for us soon. You can watch the rescue efforts live here.

Update 4:20 p.m.: Two female passengers have been taken to Bellevue, CBS reports. One was in cardiac arrest and the other in respiratory arrest. Another man was taken to a different hospital.

4:34 p.m.: NBC is reporting that the passengers are tourists from England. The pilot and three of the tourists were pulled out of the water; the fourth's status is still unknown.

4:56: Via the New York Times, the body of the fourth person, a woman, has been found underwater and pulled to the surface by divers. She was dead.

The pilot has been identified as Captain Paul Dudley, and the passengers were all British tourists but have not been named. Mayor Bloomberg will provide an update on the crash at 5 p.m.

[rgray@villagevoice.com] [@_rosiegray]

Go to Runnin' Scared for more Voice news coverage.