Article from KMBC in KC
Plane Goes Down In Jefferson City Neighborhood
Authorities Say Plane Apparently Experienced Engine Problems
POSTED: 8:52 am CDT October 15, 2004
UPDATED: 10:24 am CDT October 15, 2004
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Two pilots died when their plane crashed in a residential area of Missouri's capital late Thursday night, officials from their airline said Friday. No passengers were aboard the regional jet.
"I am greatly saddened by the loss of our crew," said Philip Trenary, chief executive of Pinnacle Airlines. "My prayers and the prayers of all Pinnacle people are with their family and loved ones."
The airline did not identify the pilots, pending the notification of their families.
At a morning news conference, police in Jefferson City said they had no indication that any residents were injured or killed in the crash of the CRJ2, a two-engine regional jet that seats up to 50 people.
The plane was operated by Memphis-based Pinnacle, a regional carrier affiliated with Northwest Airlines, Northwest spokesman Kurt Ebenhoch said. Police Capt. Michael Smith said some witnesses reported having seen the plane on fire shortly before it crashed.
Officials from the National Transportation Safety Board arrived at the scene Friday morning, and already had possession of the plane's flight data recorder.
Jason Turner, a spokesman for the Jefferson City Fire Department, said the plane appeared to have crashed into "a garage of some type," which was destroyed, about two miles from the city's airport. The rear of a neighboring house also caught on fire.
The plane left Little Rock, Ark., at 9:21 p.m. Thursday and was headed to Minneapolis when it crashed at 10:30 p.m., Pinnacle said.
Smith said the plane was apparently experiencing engine problems when it went down. The original call from the plane reporting trouble with both of its engines came into the Springfield air traffic control tower, which relayed the message to authorities in Jefferson City.
"One aircraft engine was along the road. There was some debris in a tree and a burned area," Smith said. "You could still smell the fuel."
Fire and emergency personnel were sent to the airport to prepare for a problematic landing, but before they reached the air field they received reports that the plane had crashed, Turner said.
Friday morning, police tape still surrounded the crash site. A large chunk of the plane's charred and twisted tail and a wing rested between two houses.
Police evacuated a roughly three-block area near the crash site for about an hour Thursday night. The Red Cross set up a shelter for evacuees, but no one used it, volunteer Don Otto said.
John Baysinger told the
News Tribune in Jefferson City the plane crashed in his back yard.
"When I looked outside the window, the whole back of my house was on fire," he said.
Lesley Ammikus was sitting on the deck of her apartment when the plane approached her neighborhood.
"I saw it right at the trees. I thought, 'That's way too loud and too low,' and it just hit," Ammikus said. "It went boom when it hit."
Amanda Clemons, 24, said she heard the plane crash and could see the site from her Jefferson City apartment.
"I felt the apartment shake. I thought it was thunder at first, and then maybe an earthquake," Clemons said.
Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Probably not new news to anyone but thought I would add more of a local story. My prayers are with everyone involved. What an awful dayfor aviation.