Small plane crashes in Long Island, all passengers survive
A plane carrying three people, a pilot and two tourists from Korea, crashed into the front lawn of a home on Long Island, New York.
The small, single-engine Cessna plane crashed into power lines around 10 p.m. Sunday. The wires suspended the aircraft about a foot from the ground, preventing it from actually striking the lawn or damaging any homes in the Valley Stream residential area.
Authorities found the three survivors sitting on the curb across the street from where the plane had crashed. The pilot , Dongl Kim, 27, and passengers Hong Joo-Na, 29, and Jung Woo, 26, rented the plane at Republic Airport in Farmingdale, New York, in association with a local flight school, officials said.
The three were on their way back from a trip to Niagara Falls and encountered dense fog. The National Weather Service had issued an advisory before the crash. The fog made Kim miss the runway a total of six times after he attempted to land at both Republic Airport and John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens, according to Nassau Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder.
The plane eventually ran out of fuel and clipped a local church before nosediving into the lawn of a single-family home. Nassau Police confirmed Hong was the only passenger injured and left the scene with a sprained finger.
Valley Stream resident Lucila Hernandez, 20, said the crash knocked out the power in her home as well as her neighbors'. Everyone gathered at the scene to inspect the damage, she said.
"It was panic," Hernandez told ABC News. "It was the last thing I expected to see when I turned the corner. I thought people had gotten hurt or died."
Ryder denied any possibility of substance abuse issues related to the crash.
"They all appear to be fine at this time," he said.
The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed to ABC News it is investigating the incident.
