Teenager pulled alive from wreckage of Detroit plane crash that killed everyone else on board
A teenager survived a plane crash that killed everyone else onboard after being pulled from the wreckage by local residents.
A single-engine plane crashed on a residential street in Detroit on Sunday night, killing two of the three passengers inside, police said. The plane was en route to the city’s municipal airport when the city tower lost contact with them, according to local news reports.
The plane struck a tree and a power line as it tumbled from the sky, and hit the ground engulfed in flames, according to witnesses.
A 17-year-old, who can be seen escaping the wreckage in video from the scene, is in critical condition.
Cordell Owens, an area resident, said he saw the crash and sprang into action.
"The plane crashed and we start running towards it and it was a small plane and the flames were out of control, it started burning and the gentleman in the plane started hollering and screaming, and that was when I went to work," he told local news outlet WXYZ.
"I feel real good about it," he added. "I don't feel like a hero, but it is something that I had to do."
Larry Whitfield, a 72-year-old who lives around the corner from the accident site, told the Detroit Free Press he also assisted in the rescue, using a stick and then an ax to try to break open the plane’s windows.
As a crowd of observers called out that the plane was about to explode, Mr Whitfield and his friend were able to break open the window and open the plane’s door.
Asked if he felt like a hero, Mr Whitfield responded that "anybody would have done it."
Police said a 54-year-old man and a 48-year-old woman were killed in the accident.
Police said the teenager only made it out of the crash thanks to the efforts of the neighbours.
“Courageous citizens, these are the type of citizens we do have here in the city of Detroit, and I think that they should be recognised at some point,” Detroit police Captain Mark Thornton told 680 News.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the cause of the crash.
