A small plane crashed into high-voltage power lines about 30 miles north of Washington, D.C., on Sunday, causing mass outages, with rescue services working into the night to rescue two people on board the aircraft still entangled in the cables.
The aircraft crashed about 5.30 p.m. (2230 GMT) in misty and wet conditions in Montgomery Village, Maryland, according to the Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Service.
It became caught up in live power lines about 100 feet from the ground.
The impact caused power outages to over 120,000 customers, according to Pepco, the Washington-area utility company. Roads were also closed and many traffic lights in the area were out.
Fire officials said two people were alive but trapped inside the plane.
Two seriously injured people trapped inside the plane have been rescued, authorities said early on Monday.
“Both patients have been transported to local area trauma centers with serious injuries,” Montgomery County Fire Chief Scott Goldstein said in a press briefing, adding that the two people had suffered hypothermia and orthopedic and trauma-related injuries.
Goldstein said crews had been able to electrically ground the plane at about 11.30 p.m. and it had been secured nearly 45 minutes later, with both patients coming down by 12.36 a.m.
Most power in the county has been restored, according to Goldstein. Two hospitals were back at full capacity after earlier being limited, he said.
Washington-area utility company Pepco said it had restored electric service for all customers who had been impacted by the incident. The company was continuing to stabilize energy infrastructure at the scene and assessing damage before beginning repairs, it added.
Crews were still working to remove the plane from power lines, the Montgomery County MD Office of Emergency Management & Homeland Security said.
Goldstein said earlier that rescue officials were in contact with the occupants by calling their cell phones.
According to the FAA, the Mooney M20J aircraft was flying from Westchester, New York and had been due to land at Montgomery Airpark, close to the crash site. — Reuters
