PHOENIX -- Two television station helicopters tracking a high-speed police pursuit in central Phoenix collided in midair and crashed Friday, killing everyone on both aircraft.

UNEDITED VIDEO: Moment Of Crash

The helicopters collided over Steele Indian School Park while filming the pursuit for Channels 3 and 15. Three other news helicopters were also over the scene.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait," Capt. Connie Sullivan reported from KPHO's News Hawk 5 around 12:40 p.m. "We've got a problem here. I've got a helicopter down."

KNXV-TV identified the people aboard its chopper as reporter-pilot Craig Smith and photographer Rick Krolak. KTVK said pilot-reporter Scott Bowerbank was aboard its helicopter, along with photographer Jim Cox.

Images: Victims Of Helicopter Crash

Sgt. Joel Tranter of the Phoenix Police Department told CBS 5 News no one on the ground was injured or killed.

Television viewers did not see the crash since cameras aboard both aircraft were pointed at the ground.

Video from the scene showed flames and two columns of thick black smoke rise from where both helicopters crashed. Firefighters and rescue personnel rushed to the scene.

Tranter said debris is scattered across several acres. He said the wreckage of the two helicopters came to a rest about 25 to 30 yards away from each other in the center of the park.

'Terrible Tragedy,' Mayor, Police Chief Say

Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon and Phoenix Police Chief Jack Harris expressed their condolences to the families of the victims during a news briefing.

"The tragedy we face as a community is strong and painful," Gordon said. "I lost a personal friend as all of you have."

Harris echoed Gordon's sentiments.

"I can't tell you what a terrible tragedy this has been for our community," Harris said. "This is a terrible tragedy for the media family and the Phoenix Police Department."

Witnesses: 'Looked Something like 9/11'

Air conditioning contractor Rick Gotchie told CBS 5 News he saw channel 15's helicopter flying underneath the channel 3 aircraft. He said channel 15's rotors hit the tail of the channel 3 helicopter. Gotchie said channel 15's helicopter went down nose first and channel's chopper crashed tail first.

"The choppers exploded a couple of time on the ground," Gotchie said. "It was like a vacuum. They just got sucked into each other and they both exploded and pieces were flying everywhere."

"I was standing out on Central Avenue and I was looking over to the park and saw the helicopters get close," Jerry Fender, another witness, said. "The blue one split and went down. The red or orange one went right after it."

"Looked something like 9-11 with debris exploding everywhere," said witness Brian Kenneth.

Crash Investigation Opens

The pond in the park is now a hazmat. A sheen of fuel covers the surface with pieces of aircraft underneath.

A dive team plans to enter the pond on Saturday to retrieve wreckage and send it off for analysis, police said.

The National Transportation Safety Board said it would send a team to investigate the collision.

A Federal Aviation Administration investigator was on the scene Friday.

Began As Police Pursuit; Ended As Barricade Situation

The helicopters were covering the police pursuit of a work truck.

"It began at 12:06 p.m. with a call to 911 about a stolen vehicle around 7th Street and Jefferson Street," Harris said. "Two officers spotted the vehicle and were rammed by the truck."

Police said they deployed stop sticks and the vehicle was eventually riding on its rims.

"The driver then climbed out and stole a second vehicle and continued escaping westbound on Indian School Road," Harris said.

That's about the time the helicopters collided, Harris said.

"From that point, the driver rammed a number of vehicles, another police car and then bailed out," Harris said.

The man was arrested about three hours later after SWAT officers stormed a home in far west Phoenix where he had barricaded himself.

Police later identified the suspect as Christopher Jones, 23, and said he has a criminal record and is on parole.

A SWAT team with canines made a forced entry, police said. Jones suffered a number of dog bites and is being treated for the wounds, police said.

As he was led into police headquarters in handcuffs, Jones had a few words for CBS 5 News cameras. "It wasn't a crime spree, it was an accident," he said. "I didn't even know what I was doing. I blanked out, dude."

Jones was booked into jail late Friday night on two counts of vehicle theft, four counts of aggravated assault on a police officer and one count of resisting arrest with other charges expected to be filed later, according to Tranter.

Harris said he believes Jones will be held responsible for the deaths of the four TV station employees.

Chopper3

Probe Opens In Chopper Collision Divers Set To Pull Debris From Park's Pond

A federal probe is set to open after two TV station helicopters tracking a high-speed police pursuit collide in midair and crash to the ground, killing all four people on board.

A federal probe is set to open on Saturday after two television station helicopters tracking a high-speed police pursuit in central Phoenix collided in midair and crashed to the ground, killing all four people on board.

UNEDITED VIDEO: Moment Of Crash

Television station KNXV operated one of the choppers. The other was from KTVK.

A three-member team from the National Transportation Safety Board is set to start its investigation at Steele Indian School Park where wreckage from the two helicopters is strewn across several acres.

NTSB senior investigator Howard Plagens of the Southwest Regional Office has been designated Investigator-in-Charge.

The pond in the park is now a hazmat.

A sheen of fuel covers the surface with pieces of aircraft underneath.

A dive team plans to enter the pond on Saturday to retrieve wreckage and send it off for analysis, police said.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait," Capt. Connie Sullivan reported aboard News Hawk 5 around 12:40 p.m. on Friday. "We've got a problem here. I've got a helicopter down."

KPHO's Sullivan was one of three other news helicopter pilots who were covering the pursuit.

KNXV-TV identified the people aboard its chopper as reporter-pilot Craig Smith and photographer Rick Krolak. KTVK said pilot-reporter Scott Bowerbank was aboard its helicopter, along with photographer Jim Cox.

Images: Victims Of Helicopter Crash

Sgt. Joel Tranter of the Phoenix Police Department told CBS 5 News no one on the ground was injured or killed.

Television viewers did not see the crash since cameras aboard both aircraft were pointed at the ground.

Video from the scene showed flames and two columns of thick black smoke rise from where both helicopters crashed. Firefighters and rescue personnel rushed to the scene.

Tranter said the wreckage of the two helicopters came to a rest about 25 to 30 yards away from each other in the center of the park.

Witnesses: 'Looked Something like 9/11'

Air conditioning contractor Rick Gotchie told CBS 5 News he saw channel 15's helicopter flying underneath the channel 3 aircraft. He said channel 15's rotors hit the tail of the channel 3 helicopter. Gotchie said channel 15's helicopter went down nose first and channel's chopper crashed tail first.

"The choppers exploded a couple of time on the ground," Gotchie said. "It was like a vacuum. They just got sucked into each other and they both exploded and pieces were flying everywhere."

"I was standing out on Central Avenue and I was looking over to the park and saw the helicopters get close," Jerry Fender, another witness, said. "The blue one split and went down. The red or orange one went right after it."

"Looked something like 9-11 with debris exploding everywhere," said witness Brian Kenneth.

Began As Police Pursuit; Ended As Barricade Situation

The helicopters were covering the police pursuit of a work truck.

"It began at 12:06 p.m. with a call to 911 about a stolen vehicle around 7th Street and Jefferson Street," Harris said. "Two officers spotted the vehicle and were rammed by the truck."

Police said they deployed stop sticks and the vehicle was eventually riding on its rims.

"The driver then climbed out and stole a second vehicle and continued escaping westbound on Indian School Road," Harris said.

That's about the time the helicopters collided, Harris said.

"From that point, the driver rammed a number of vehicles, another police car and then bailed out," Harris said.

The man was arrested about three hours later after SWAT officers stormed a home in far west Phoenix where he had barricaded himself.

Police later identified the suspect as Christopher Jones, 23, and said he has a criminal record and is on parole.

A SWAT team with canines made a forced entry, police said. Jones suffered a number of dog bites and is being treated for the wounds, police said.

As he was led into police headquarters in handcuffs, Jones had a few words for CBS 5 News cameras. "It wasn't a crime spree, it was an accident," he said. "I didn't even know what I was doing. I blanked out, dude."

Jones was booked into jail late Friday night on two counts of vehicle theft, four counts of aggravated assault on a police officer and one count of resisting arrest with other charges expected to be filed later, according to Tranter.

Harris said he believes Jones will be held responsible for the deaths of the four TV station employees.

'Terrible Tragedy,' Mayor, Police Chief Say

Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon and Phoenix Police Chief Jack Harris expressed their condolences to the families of the victims during a news briefing.

"The tragedy we face as a community is strong and painful," Gordon said. "I lost a personal friend as all of you have."

Harris echoed Gordon's sentiments.

"I can't tell you what a terrible tragedy this has been for our community," Harris said. "This is a terrible tragedy for the media family and the Phoenix Police Department."