Two people died after a small, single-engine airplane crash-landed and burst into flames at Van Nuys Airport in Los Angeles, Calif., on Wednesday morning, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.
“Fire crews quickly extinguished the flames, but, sadly, both occupants on board were found to be deceased,” the LAFD said in a statement, describing the accident, which is suspected to have killed a flight instructor and a student, as “a very high-impact crash that erupted into flames.”
Two people are dead after a small plane crashed at Van Nuys Airport and erupted in flames Wednesday morning, according to an ABC7 helicopter cameraman at the scene. https://t.co/rK1m00K67F pic.twitter.com/7jxOo2qlMh
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) August 2, 2023
“We have a very high impact, what was described as nose-first into the ground,” the message continued. “So tragically, that likely quickly caused the death of both occupants.”
Creating a huge fire complete with massive billows of smoke, as depicted in a gut-wrenching Citizen video, the sight terrified several at the Southern California airport, including Marcel Melanson, a camera operator who witnessed the scary ordeal firsthand.
Two people were killed when the small plane crashed and burst into flames. Firefighters quickly put out the fire in the single-engine aircraft. Van Nuys Airport was briefly shut down but has since reopened to general aviation.#citizen pic.twitter.com/9GsXxXO08E
— Citizen (@CitizenApp) August 2, 2023
"I saw the aircraft make impact into the ground," he told local ABC affiliate KABC-TV. "You just go and try to do something to help out. Obviously, it was engulfed in flames. It was futile to help the people inside - at the same time you don't want it to spread or cause anything to get worse."
Take it from these guys: If you’re hitting the friendly skies be sure to fly safe!
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