Two people were killed when a small plane crashed into a Florida mobile home park Tuesday afternoon, according to officials from the National Transportation Safety Board.
Neither victim was identified by the NTSB but one victim was the aircraft's pilot and the other was a person on the ground. The NTSB made the preliminary announcement at a press conference on Wednesday morning. No other injuries were suffered in the crash.
The crash happened at 5:33 p.m. Tuesday, when a Piper Cherokee 180 crashed at the Mar Mak Colony Club mobile home park in suburban Lake Worth. NTSB investigators said the plane was headed to nearby Lantana after departing in Orlando.
Officials would not speculate on the cause of the wreck but did say they didn't believe any distress calls were made by the pilot prior to the crash. The plane was destroyed in the crash and was "completely engulfed" in flames when emergency crews arrived at the scene.
Cap. Alberto Borroto with Palm Beach County Fire Rescue said two mobile homes caught fire when the plane crashed.
BREAKING: NTSB arriving NOW to investigate Tuesday's plant crash in suburban Lake Worth. @WPTV pic.twitter.com/6fHuckILTq
— Andrew Ruiz (@AndrewNRuiz) October 14, 2015
"They started an aggressive attack, brought it under control, kept exposures to a minimum to the two homes, no surrounding homes were affected," said Borroto.
A father of one of the unidentified victims told West Palm Beach's WPTV that his 21-year-old daughter was living in one of the mobile homes where the crash occurred
Domingo Galicia said he was in the home when the plane plunged into his daughter's room.
"Banny, Banny, Banny, come here, come here," Domingo Galicia described how he tried to call his daughter, but he said he could only see smoke.
Galicia ran out of the home and never saw his daughter escape.
"I don't feel anything. I feel like I'm standing on air," said Galicia in Spanish.
His daughter, Banny Galicia, was sleeping in her bedroom when the plane hit.
"Banny was an incredible woman, very hard working, and studious," Galicia added in Spanish.
Officials say two families are being assisted by the Red Cross due to power outages caused by the plane crash.
"I just saw the plane go across the field sway side to side like sputtering for gas and all of a sudden drop. and then blew up," witness Arthur Grimes said.
There is no information on how the accident happened or the number of victims involved.
The FAA is on the scene to investigate the plane crash. Palm Beach County Fire Rescue has turned the investigation over to FAA. One unit will be on the scene to assist FAA.
Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board are expected to arrive to the crash site Wednesday.
The FAA issued this statement:
The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Department in Florida advised the FAA that a small aircraft crashed into a mobile home park in Lake Worth shortly before 6 PM. They said that homes are on fire. We have no information about the aircraft or other details yet. We will update the statement when the new information is available.
Palm Beach County Fire Rescue said its crews responded to reports of a possible aircraft accident near Lake Worth Rd and Mar Mak Dr.
It says responding crews reported a visible column of smoke and callers reported a low flying aircraft.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
Families and friends of victims at Lake Worth plane crash site pray together. pic.twitter.com/Jl9KkaIgtZ
— Michelle Quesada (@M_Quesada) October 14, 2015
NEW VIDEO: #PlaneCrash in LW. Trailer park homes still smoking. @WPTV @Fox29WFLX pic.twitter.com/hsLAEnKMhk
— EricP_WPTV (@EricPasquarelli) October 14, 2015
More pics from the scene of small plane crash in suburban Lake Worth @WPTV pic.twitter.com/2h8PiTMV04
— Alyssa Hyman (@AlyssaHymanWPTV) October 13, 2015
FAA on the way to Lake Worth to investigate plane crash into mobile home park on Mar-Mak Drive. @WPTV pic.twitter.com/v0XFcwGQSI
— Michelle Quesada (@M_Quesada) October 13, 2015
@PBCFR says unknown number of victims from plane crash at Mar-Mak Colony Club Mobile Home Park. No info on fatalities at this time. @WPTV
— Michelle Quesada (@M_Quesada) October 13, 2015
Witnesses told me they saw flames coming out of a mobile home in the Mar Mak neighborhood. @WPTV
— Charlie Keegan (@CKeeganWPTV) October 13, 2015
#breaking On scene of a possible plane crash in Palm Springs. I see smoke coming out of neighborhood. @WPTV pic.twitter.com/aYMjQjyZPr
— Charlie Keegan (@CKeeganWPTV) October 13, 2015
A YouReporter sent in a photo of smoke billowing from an area near the Lake Worth Drive In.
