Helicopter makes emergency landing at suburban park

HANOVER PARK, Ill. (WLS) -- A helicopter made an emergency landing at a northwest suburban park just before a youth football team was about to take the field.

It happened around 11 a.m. in Hanover Park.

A spokesperson for the Hanover Park Hurricanes youth football and cheerleading program said the helicopter suffered engine failure. One of the coaches praised the pilot for avoiding everyone.

A couple of the boys setting up for the game described what happened.

"I saw the helicopter and I thought, 'Why is this so low?' And I thought it wasn't going to land. I thought, 'They don't land on football fields,'" said witness Nick Castrovillari.

"It crashed and I started running and I thought one of the little things that spins was going to fly out," witness Shiking Marshall said.

Two people were on board the helicopter. No one was hurt, but the field was damaged and Sunday's games have been canceled.