Clash between two helicopters in Rio de Janeiro takes the lives of Oliver Tree and youtuber Gaspi
A tragic collision in the air involving two helicopters killed six people this Sunday morning (14), in the neighborhood of Recreio dos Bandeirantes, located in the Southwest Zone of Rio de Janeiro. Among the fatal victims of the air disaster is Argentine content creator Gaspar Prim Díaz, widely known on digital platforms as Gaspi, aged just 23.
The disaster resulted in the death of all occupants of the two aircraft involved. Authorities also certified the death of North American artist Oliver Tree, aged 32, who was on a professional schedule in the capital of the state of Rio de Janeiro as part of a series of international presentations of his musical career.
Preliminary surveys by rescue teams indicate that one of the devices was flying at almost maximum capacity, carrying five people, while the second piece of equipment was occupied exclusively by its commander. According to data confirmed by CNN Brasil, the list of victims of the accident includes the following names:
- Oliver Tree Nickel (passenger)
- Lucas Vignale (passenger)
- Gaspar Prim (passenger)
- Lucas Brito Chaves (passenger)
- Alexandre Souza (pilot)
- Charles Marsillac (pilot)
The wreckage of the two aircraft landed on property belonging to a religious institution, a space that currently serves as a rental yard for the car manufacturer BYD. The impact on the ground generated an immediate strong detonation, and the flames quickly reached dozens of electric cars parked in the complex. This scenario made the work of emergency teams difficult, since the lithium-ion batteries in these cars undergo a chemical process called thermal runaway, which feeds back into the fire and requires specific continuous cooling techniques.
Who was the Argentine influencer who lost his life in the accident
Born in the capital of Argentina, where he was born on December 28, 2002, the young video producer took his first steps on YouTube as a teenager, joining the platform around 2018. His profile quickly gained traction on the internet thanks to a comedy format marked by acid provocations and unfiltered approaches.
The Argentine’s success was consolidated through recordings made on the sidewalks of Buenos Aires, where he approached strangers in an unusual way and transformed the expression “buenass” into his trademark. However, the controversial tone of its productions clashed with the video platform’s guidelines, which led the company to delete a significant portion of its old publications.
Today, the content creator’s official page has a base of over 2.8 million subscribers, a volume of engagement that is repeated in a very similar way on his Instagram account.
Even though he was experiencing the most far-reaching moment of his digital career, the young man decided to abruptly move away from producing material for the internet. During this period of hiatus, he did not provide any type of immediate clarification to his audience about the reasons for the distancing.
The silence on social media was only broken in 2024, when he published new audiovisual material. In this return recording, the Argentinean transparently discussed his mental health problems and detailed the psychological burden generated by constant exposure on the internet.
Dynamics of the fall and work of rescue teams in the west zone
Initial investigations indicate that the two devices collided while they were still in flight, losing support shortly afterwards. The rain of metal parts and fuselage directly hit around twenty vehicles that were in the automaker’s yard, generating a chain reaction of small explosions caused by the electrical components of the destroyed cars.
The official activation of the Military Fire Department of the State of Rio de Janeiro occurred at exactly 8:59 am, and the crews needed approximately an hour of intense work to extinguish the main fire, ending the fight at 10 am. To ensure the safety of the operation and access for heavy vehicles, traffic officers completely blocked the marginal lane of Avenida das Américas.
Data collected by the g1 portal reveals that the helicopter occupied by the group of passengers had taken off from the municipality of Mangaratiba, located in the Costa Verde region of Rio de Janeiro, on a journey of approximately 80 kilometers to the capital. The second aircraft involved in the disaster followed a solitary route, carrying only the professional responsible for piloting it.
