Robert Barrientos, the fiancé of NBC reporter Eliana Moreno, has released a heartbreaking tribute following her death in a helicopter crash on 15 September in Los Angeles. Moreno, 38, was killed when the NewsChopper4 she was reporting from suddenly lost altitude and crashed near the scene of a fatal bus collision. The crash also claimed the life of pilot George Marciniw, 70, and bystander Gutierrez Mejia, 29.

In his first public statement, Barrientos described Moreno as loving, kind, compassionate and intelligent, with an exceptional sense of humour. The couple, who announced their engagement last October, had dreamed of retiring to Tennessee to live on land and care for animals together. Moreno was a veteran aerial reporter who had been flying in news helicopters since 2010, covering police pursuits, wildfires and major local events across Los Angeles for NBC4 and Telemundo. The medical examiner determined she died from blunt force trauma, thermal injuries and inhalation of combustion products.