Yet another A36 crash

Here's the link but you might be redirected to the front page.
http://www.rep-am.com/story.php?id=20088

Here's the pic.
http://www.rep-am.com/frontpix/a1pix.jpg

Here's the story:

Pilot walks away from Southbury plane crash

Thursday, April 21, 2005

By Marrecca Fiore

Copyright © 2005 Republican-American

SOUTHBURY -- A single-engine airplane crashed into a wooded area off of
Route 67 on Wednesday afternoon, knocking down power lines and igniting
brush fires near a senior citizen housing complex.

John Thorp, 52, was the pilot, according to The Associated Press. He walked
away from the crash with what appeared to be minor injuries, officials and
witnesses said. Thorp was alone in the plane, which was a 1980 six-seater,
fixed-wing Beech A36TC registered to Jest Air LLC of Willoughby, Ohio.

Shortly after the 4 p.m. crash, the wreckage of the small plane was
nose-down and burning in the woods.

Thick, black power lines, hanging like an upside down horseshoe on the road,
were shooting sparks into a wooded area near the Grace Meadows housing
complex igniting the dry brush. Flames were still shooting out of the brush
several hours later and firefighters had set up staging along the perimeter
to protect the senior housing.

First Selectman Mark Cooper, who lives within walking distance of the crash
site, said he arrived at the scene within minutes of the crash and the pilot
seemed fine but "shaken." He was taken to Waterbury Hospital by ambulance as
a precaution, according to Southbury Fire Chief Tim Baldwin.

Michael O'Donnell, manager of Waterbury-Oxford Airport, which is about four
miles by air from the crash site, said the airport received a distress call
from the pilot just before 4 p.m.

"He said he had a serious engine problem and possibly threw a rod," he said.

The plane was en route from Ohio to Rhode Island, O'Donnell said. "He tried
to make it to Oxford, but wasn't able to," he said.

Airport officials were inspecting the scene, but it was not clear when the
National Transportation Safety Board would begin its investigation. Calls to
the Federal Aviation Administration were not returned Wednesday.

The crash sent residents of Roxbury Road, also known as Route 67, and nearby
neighborhoods, as well as motorists and people fishing in the Pomperaug
River at O&G Industries Trap Rock Quarry scurrying to the scene. Although
police had Roxbury Road blocked off at both ends that didn't stop people,
many with cameras in hand, from cutting through private yards to catch a
glimpse of the downed airplane.

Firefighters worked through the muggy evening and night extinguishing
flames, which could be seen billowing up through the trees around the wooded
area of the plane crash.

Waterbury resident Richard Colicchia was driving down Roxbury Road toward
Main Street North, or Route 6, when the airplane seemed to come out of
nowhere.

"I looked up and there it was right in the way of my windshield," said
Colicchia, explaining how close the plane crashed to his car. "It sort of
came across the street, clipped the wires and went into the woods."

Colicchia said the downed wires exploded shortly after the crash. He stopped
to check on the occupants when he saw the pilot walking down the road.

"He was sitting on the curb after," he said. "His chin was bleeding and
there was blood on his knee. Other than that he seemed to be alright. We
asked him and he said he was."

Fire and rescue personnel from Southbury, Southford, Oxford and Woodbury
responded to the scene. Waterbury-Oxford Airport fire personnel also helped
fight the flames. The Department of Environmental Protection was on the
scene checking for spilled fuel. Baldwin said the river was secured to
minimize fuel runoff immediately after firefighters arrived on the scene.

The crash cut off some power to the area and Connecticut Light & Power had
to turn off all power in the area for the safety of firefighters. It took
the power company several hours to ensure all power had been turned off in
the area of the crash. As of 8:30 p.m. about 1,262 Southbury residents and
955 Woodbury residents were without power. CL&P spokesman Frank Poirot said
he was not sure if the Woodbury and Southbury outages were connected. He
said it was also possible that some Middlebury customers were without power.

Southbury firefighters and airport officials left the scene just before 10
p.m. Baldwin said state police were still at the site, along with CL&P
workers trying to restore power.

All flames around Grace Meadows were extinguished by the time Southbury
firefighters left the scene, Baldwin said.

Southbury resident Dennis Dwyer was fishing with his son, Peter when the two
heard of loud crash.

"It scared the crap out us," he said. "I thought it was one of the trucks
from O&G at first. The minute we ran up, we saw the flames."

New Milford resident Richard Guido was out for a relaxing motorcycle ride
when he was startled by the sight of the crashing plane.

"It was a scary thing," he said. "I looked up and saw this plane hit the
power lines and sort of wing over. I was stopped at the stop light or I
probably would have been right under it."