One person has died and two others sustained injuries after a small plane crashed at Block Island State Airport Wednesday afternoon.
According to the Rhode Island Airport Corporation, a Piper Cherokee Archer aircraft was “involved in an accident” at 12:29 p.m. Three people were on board at the time and were taken to the Block Island Medical Center and were then flown out of New Shoreham, according to the Block Island Times.
One of the three has since died, U.S. Rep. Seth Magaziner’s office confirmed.
“My heart goes out to those impacted by today’s plane crash on Block Island,” Magaziner said in a statement.
The names and conditions of the people involved in the crash were not immediately made available. However, WJAR Channel 10 reported that the man who died was 76 and the two people who were injured were also in their 70s.
The plane had originally departed from Albany, New York, at around 10:50 a.m., confirmed Albany International Airport spokesperson Matt Hunter.
“It’s terrible what happened,” Hunter said in a phone call.
He said the plane, identified as Piper P28A, is owned by Condair Flyers Flying Club in Latham, New York. It has 75 members who jointly own five aircraft — three Cessnas and two Pipers, according to its website.
More than 20 firefighters, police officers, rescue squad members and RIAC staff responded to the scene. Spokesperson Bill Fischer declined to provide additional details on the nature of the accident, which will be investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
An NTSB investigator is scheduled to arrive on scene Thursday, an agency spokesperson confirmed in an email.
“Once on site, the investigator will begin the process of documenting the scene and examining the aircraft,” the spokesperson said. “The aircraft will then be recovered to a secure facility for further evaluation. “
WJAR Channel 10 reported that the plane came to a rest upside down in some bushes near the east end of the runway after a third attempt at landing.
Photographs posted to Facebook by the Block Island Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department show mangled wreckage among the nearby trees and ivy.
New Shoreham Chief Paul Deane was not available for comment.
This story was originally published by the Rhode Island Current.
