HOUSTON — A Houston-area father was among the four people who died in Sunday night's helicopter crash.
Through verification with friends, family and neighbors, KHOU 11 News learned Cesar Lerma was aboard the aircraft when it crashed into a radio tower on Sunday, killing all four people in the helicopter, including a child.
In a social media post online, one friend said Lerma "loved his boys," referring to his sons.
At a makeshift memorial near the crash site, people laid flowers and reflected on the loss. They chose not to speak with KHOU 11 News, expressing they were too emotional to discuss the incident.
This comes as the National Transportation Safety Board continued its investigation into the incident. On Wednesday, the agency met with the air tour company connected with the incident.
KHOU 11 News reached out to the company but did not hear back.
The NTSB said its next update will be a preliminary report set to be released within 30 days.
Local authorities are no longer at the crash site as they finished clearing the area for the most part on Tuesday.
The property's owners are now responsible for the removal of the collapsed tower. A private security company is now monitoring the area.
On Wednesday, the Houston Institute of Forensic Science released information on the four people who died, but not including names.
Among the information was the cause of death. The three passengers said to have a cause of death of "multiple blunt force and thermal burn" injuries. The person labeled as the pilot was only shown with a cause of death of "multiple blunt force injuries."
At Houston City Council Wednesday, council members shared condolences and expressed gratitude the incident did not become worse.
"Remembering those that were lost," District H Councilmember Mario Castillo, whose district is where the incident occurred, said. "And, you know, I'm thankful that more folks, were not impacted by that and properties and that the fire department, police department responded so swiftly."