The pilot of a helicopter which crashed in central Auckland while installing a Christmas tree has miraculously escaped without serious injuries.
The seven-storey-high tree was being put up near the Te Wero Island bridge connecting the Viaduct and Wynyard Quarter on the waterfront.
The crew and pilot are OK, Telecom, which sponsors the tree, said. A St John ambulance spokesman said it was taking one person to Auckland City Hospital with minor to moderate injuries.
Telecom wrote on Twitter: "Can confirm the helicopter that crashed was putting up our Xmas tree. We're really happy to confirm pilot and ground crew all OK."
The accident, which occured about 10.30am (8.30am AEDT) today, was seen live on the TVNZ website as it was streaming the event.
Witness Steve Hall said the helicopter appeared to be trying to lift a tower near the drawbridge.
It then hovered below the tip of the tower where the blades clipped the connecting wire, threw the wire into the air and sent the helicopter into a spin before it crashed into the ground, with the cockpit pointing up into the air.
Mr Hall and several others were watching from a boat moored in the viaduct and said they remarked that the blades were getting close to the wire before they struck.
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