Memorial sign on PCH in Huntington Beach honors officer killed in 2022 helicopter crash

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (KABC) — A Huntington Beach police officer who died in a helicopter crash last year was honored Saturday with his own memorial highway sign.

A portion of the Pacific Coast Highway in Huntington Beach will now be known as “Officer Nicholas Vella Memorial Highway.”

Vella’s family was joined by local and state leaders to unveil the sign.

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Vella died on Feb. 19, 2022 in a helicopter crash in Newport Beach. He was 44.

He and another pilot were responding to a disturbance call when the helicopter crashed in Newport Beach Harbor.

Vella grew up in Southern California and spent 14 years with the Huntington Beach Police Department and four years with the Laguna Beach Police Department.