# LA bus crash and helicopter tragedy leave five dead

> A DUI driver allegedly caused a fatal bus crash, then a news helicopter covering it plummeted, killing three more.
- Title: LA bus crash and helicopter tragedy leave five dead | Shortify
- Summary: A DUI driver allegedly caused a fatal bus crash, then a news helicopter covering it plummeted, killing three more. A suspected DUI crash killed two bus…
- Keywords: bailee lynn rios, los angeles, chatsworth, bus crash, helicopter crash, dui, nbc4, angel city air, george marciniw, eliana moreno, daniel castillo, gage weida
- Source: the Guardian — https://theguardian.com/us-news/2026/sep/17/los-angeles-bus-crash-helicopter-woman-charged
- Published: 2026-09-18T00:34:32+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: bailee lynn rios, los angeles, chatsworth, bus crash, helicopter crash, dui, nbc4, angel city air, george marciniw, eliana moreno, daniel castillo, gage weida
## Wrong-way driver kills two
Bailee Lynn Rios, 36, allegedly drove drunk on the wrong side of the road, ran a red light, and crashed into an LA metro bus Tuesday, killing two passengers.
## Murder charges filed
Rios faces two murder counts for the deaths of Daniel Castillo, 46, and Gage Weida, 31. She's held on $4.1 million bail with arraignment set for September 18.
## News helicopter crashes
Hours after the bus crash, an NBC news helicopter covering the scene plummeted to the ground in a fiery crash, killing pilot George Marciniw and reporter Eliana Moreno.
## Pedestrian also killed
The helicopter crash killed a third person on the ground: 29-year-old Edy Gutierrez Mejia. Five people died total from both incidents.
## Families left devastated
Castillo left behind four children. Weida's family was planning to visit him for his 32nd birthday but now must travel "for all the wrong reasons."

> Unfortunately, we're still heading out there, but for all the wrong reasons
## Cockpit alarm heard on video
The helicopter's last broadcast captured a cockpit alarm and a woman saying "You can't pull up?" before the crash. The NTSB calls it their most important evidence.

> probably the most important evidence that we have discovered so far
## News helicopters often deadly
At least eight fatal news helicopter crashes have occurred in the US since 2000, killing 16 people total, according to federal records and news accounts.
## Key takeaway

A suspected DUI crash killed two bus passengers, and a news helicopter covering the scene crashed, killing three more people.