ALTON, Mo. (First Alert 4) - Federal investigators with the NTSB are expected to arrive Friday as the work is just beginning to piece together why a helicopter crashed late Thursday morning over the Mississippi River, leaving two people dead.

People along the river watched as the helicopter and lineman worked on a utility tower and line, a contractor doing work for Ameren, replacing a light and adding marking balls to the line.

Witnesses along the river saw what unfolded next.

Wallace Maier said, “All of a sudden, it touched the line and within two seconds, it wasn’t a helicopter anymore. It was a thousand pieces.”

We’re learning the contractor for the operation was J.F. Electric from Edwardsville . The company confirmed on Thursday afternoon that one of its employees and a subcontra

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