Miami businessman, 71, is identified as man killed after helicopter he was in spun out of control and landed into creek: Daughter, 27, survived after swimming to safety
- Jordan Zanzuri, 27, named as survivor of Miami helicopter crash that killed pilot father Clement Zanzuri, 71
- Rescuers only discovered the resting place of the crashed Hughes 369 when they saw Jordan swimming to the bank of the canal where it crashed
- The helicopter was minutes from Miami Executive Airport when it crashed at the end of their 150-mile flight from Fort Myers.
Police have named the father who died and the daughter who swam to safety after their helicopter crashed into a canal just outside Miami Executive Airport.
Jordan Zanzuri, 27, was the only passenger on board while Clement Zanzuri, 71, piloted the single-engine Hughes 369 from Fort Myers on Wednesday shortly before 2 p.m.
Witnesses called 911 after seeing the plane go into a spin before coming down and sinking in a canal just three miles from the airport.
But first responders only discovered the resting place when they saw Jordan swimming to the canal's bank and screaming that her businessman father was still trapped on board.
“At that point, divers entered the water to look for another person,” Miami Detective Alvaro Zabaleta said.
Jordan Zanzuri, 27, (center) and her father Clement Zanzuri, 71, (right) at Jordan's graduation from Columbia University last year
Jordan was taken to Jackson Memorial South Trauma Center after swimming to shore from the wreckage of the crashed helicopter outside Miami
Salvage teams finally managed to recover the wreckage of the helicopter earlier today
Rescuers went in and managed to free the 71-year-old from the wreckage before attempting CPR on the canal bank.
But he was pronounced dead on arrival at Jackson Memorial South Trauma Center, where his daughter continued to be treated this afternoon for non-life-threatening injuries.
Clement Zanzuri was president of Stoneworks Inc, a Miami-based supplier of bathroom and kitchen countertops.
His daughter graduated from Columbia University last year and posted a photo on Instagram of her father beaming with pride next to Jordan as she received her diploma.
According to her LinkedIn profile, she worked at her father's company for almost three years and is currently guiding students for the law school entrance test.
“We saw a helicopter very low, very low, and actually right behind where it happened,” said witness Vivian Alvarez.
'He flew very low. That's how I initially realized that something was going on,'
'Shortly afterwards there were five helicopters.
“It's pretty scary that something like this happened around here.”
It was Thursday morning before recovery crews were able to retrieve the battered helicopter from its resting place near 187th Avenue and SW 122nd Street using a crane.
Jordan has more than 1,100 followers on Instagram, where she documents her extensive travels
Four years ago, she was enjoying the winter in Miami while working for her father's nearby company
The talented 27-year-old spent four years coaching other students for their law exams
Just three months ago, Jordan was enjoying Thailand's Phi Phi Islands
Earlier this year we went on an adventure in Dubai with a friend
Both the Miami-Dade Police Department's Homicide Bureau and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigated the cause of the crash.
Peter C. Knudson of the NTSB said flight path data, air traffic control communications, maintenance records, weather forecasts and actual weather conditions, the pilot's license and flying experience, crash videos and witness statements will be looked at.
They will study the pilot's behavior in the 72 hours before the flight “to determine if there were any issues that could have affected the pilot's ability to safely conduct the flight.”
“NTSB investigations focus on three main areas: the pilot, the aircraft and the operational environment,” he told the Miami Herald.