A pilot and a passenger are rescued after a small plane crashes into a power line in Maryland

A pilot and a passenger are rescued after a small plane crashes into a power line in Maryland
A pilot and a passenger are rescued after a small plane crashes into a power line in Maryland

CNN

A pilot and a passenger were rescued after they were trapped for several hours in a small plane that crashed into power lines in Montgomery County, Maryland, on Sunday, according to Scott Goldstein, chief of the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Department.

He said both were taken to hospital with serious injuries.

According to Pete Brinker, principal spokesperson for Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services, the rescue operation began at 5:30 p.m. when the crew responded to reports of a small plane circling over power lines.

When the units arrived on the scene, they found a small plane hanging in the air 100 feet high that had struck the tower.

The pilot has been identified by Maryland State Police Patrick Merkel, 65, of Washington, D.C. The Louisiana State Police said in a news release that the passenger was 66-year-old John Williams of Louisiana.

Officials said firefighters were in contact with the pilot and passengers during the rescue operation and nearby roads were closed. State police said the crash occurred four miles northwest of the Montgomery County Airport.

Goldstein said during a news conference Sunday night that rescuers had to wait until the tower was “on the ground or tied up” before passengers could arrive.

The chief said it involved crews going up to put clamps or cables on the wires to ensure there was no static electricity or residual electricity. He said the plane had to be secured with a turret system. He added that the fog in the area further complicated the conditions, affecting visibility.

Goldstein said the plane “is not stable until it is chained.” “Any move, any accidental movement, will only make the situation worse.”

Bucket trucks were seen near the plane late Sunday in a rescue operation that lasted nearly six hours, according to video CNN affiliate WJLA showed.

Goldstein said the department regularly checks in with passengers on flights and regulates their cell phone use to protect their batteries.

After it was safe to reach the tower and secure the plane, “the crews extracted the passengers and brought them to area hospitals,” Goldstein said.

About 120,000 customers lost power on Sunday evening after the crash, but that number fell to less than 1,000 customers on Monday morning. Pepco Utility Company, which provides electrical service to approximately 894,000 customers in Washington, D.C. and surrounding areas in Maryland. Montgomery County is located north of Washington, DC.

“We have confirmed that a private aircraft was in contact with Pepco’s transportation lines in Montgomery County,” Pepco wrote on Twitter. “We are assessing the damage and working closely with Montgomery County Fire and Emergency Services.”

“We are awaiting site authorization to stabilize the electrical infrastructure and before crews can begin to restore service,” the company added.

Schools in Montgomery County will be closed Monday due to widespread power outages. District officers said Sunday night.

Dismiss I previously said more than 40 schools and six central offices in the Montgomery County public school system were without power, affecting services such as maintenance, bus and food service.

Goldstein said two hospitals, MedStar Montgomery Medical Center and Holy Cross Hospital, are operating at limited capacity due to the power outage.

Goldstein said Sunday night that the chiefs of the Federal Aviation Administration and Maryland State Police were on the scene. State police said the FAA imposed flight controls during the rescue operation.

The FAA told CNN that Mooney’s single-engine plane took off from New York’s Westchester County Airport. The agency will conduct an investigation of the accident with the National Transportation Safety Board.

William Smoos, who lives about a mile from the crash site, told CNN affiliate WJLA he was on his way to dinner with his son Sunday night when he saw “two big flashes” and several fire engines running.

Smoos said the accident was “very scary” and that his home is in an area frequented by planes and jets.

“I think about it a lot, where did they come from, and they’re really 200 or 300 feet in front of us,” he said.

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Tags: pilot passenger rescued small plane crashes power line Maryland