Authorities in Rio de Janeiro announced Sunday that Gaspar Prim Díaz — known online as Gaspi — was among the first identified victims of a mid‑air collision between two helicopters over Recreio dos Bandeirantes that left at least six people dead.
The initial list of named victims also includes U.S. singer Oliver Tree and Argentine director Lucas Vignale. Officials said five of the fatalities were found inside one of the aircraft; a sixth person was in the second helicopter, which fell about 100 meters from the site of the first impact.
The crash occurred at 8:59 a.m. local time. After the collision one helicopter plunged onto the parking lot of an electric vehicle dealership and ignited. Flames consumed at least 20 cars parked there, and parts of the aircraft were thrown into nearby residential and commercial buildings, enlarging the footprint of the emergency response.
Gaspar Prim Díaz rose to prominence as a creator of irreverent street‑style videos and was widely known online by the single name Gaspi; he had increased international visibility after participating in La Velada del Año V in 2025. Lucas Vignale, born in Buenos Aires in 1997, worked in independent film and in music‑video editing. Oliver Tree is identified among the deceased as the U.S. singer on the officials' list.
Firefighters and specialized aviation examiners — peritos aeronáuticos — mounted an extensive rescue and recovery operation at the scene. Crews worked to extinguish the blaze in the dealership parking area, clear wreckage and search nearby buildings hit by debris. Authorities released the first victim names Sunday while the on‑site response and forensic work continued.
Despite the rapid identification of several high‑profile victims, authorities have not yet explained how the two helicopters collided in mid‑flight. That absence of a cause is now the central unanswered fact: investigators at the scene are working to establish what led two aircraft to strike each other over a populated neighborhood at 8:59 a.m.
The immediate consequences are clear and grim. At least six people are dead, one helicopter burned over a commercial parking lot and at least 20 vehicles were affected by the fire. Parts thrown from the aircraft hit nearby homes and businesses, widening the scope of damage beyond the two aircraft and complicating access to wreckage for investigators.
For relatives, colleagues and audiences, the announcement that Gaspi was among the victims gave the accident an instant public face. Officials provided the first names on the same day emergency crews were still combing the site; that timing gave families early confirmation even as technical questions remained unresolved.
The most urgent task now is forensic and procedural: teams on site must secure physical evidence, document damage to both aircraft and gather whatever operational data exists to reconstruct the sequence of events. Authorities have said peritos aeronáuticos and firefighters remain at the scene to continue that work, but they have not yet laid out a timeline for when a cause will be known.
The single, open question that will determine next steps is narrow and practical: how did two helicopters collide over Recreio dos Bandeirantes at 8:59 a.m.? The investigators now at the site will need to answer that before officials can explain whether the outcome calls for safety recommendations, regulatory action or criminal inquiries.
