2 People Killed After Plane Crashes Into Atlanta Apartment Complex
A small plane crashed into an apartment complex in Atlanta shortly after take-off on Wednesday, killing two people on board.
A Piper PA-28 left the DeKalb-Peachtree Airport around 10:30 a.m. and soon crashed into the complex on Oakawana Drive, a spokesperson for the Federal Aviation Administration says in a statement to PEOPLE.
The road is just 5 miles away from the airport and about 10 miles northeast of the city’s downtown.
One death was confirmed just before noon, while the second victim died later that afternoon, a spokesperson for the DeKalb County Fire Rescue told PEOPLE in a statement.
No one was in the Clairmont Hills Townhouses complex when the plane crashed into its crawl space, DeKalb County Fire Capt. Dion Bentley said, according to the Associated Press.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the crash.
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Neighbor West Hutchinson told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he frequently hears planes flying overhead and was outside on his back porch during Wednesday’s crash.
“All of a sudden, I heard a really loud crack,” he said. “It was obvious that the plane had crashed, because it was really loud and all of a sudden went immediately silent.”
Hutchinson said he quickly called police, then hopped in his car in search of the plane, though it was difficult to find, as there was no smoke or any other signs of a crash.
The apartment complex’s community manager did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s requests for comment.
