The pilot who crashed his two-seat plane in the Mink Hills in Warner on Sunday is still recovering from his injuries at Concord Hospital and is in “fair condition,” according to a hospital spokeswoman.
A woman who was also in the plane has not been identified, but she suffered less severe injuries than the pilot, Warner fire Chief Ed Raymond said. She was also taken to Concord Hospital on Sunday night.
The pilot has been identified as David Ralph of Great Barrington, Mass. Ralph is a certified private pilot who kept his plane at Canaan Airport in North Canaan, Conn., near the Massachusetts-Connecticut border.
A mechanic at the airport, who declined to share his full name, said Ralph often flew into New Hampshire and had been gone for “a week or more.” Ralph’s American Champion Aircraft has two seats in a line with the pilot sitting in the front.
Officials with the Federal Aviation Administration were at the crash site Monday, Raymond said. The state’s forestry department is working to remove the wreckage from the Harriman Chandler State Forest.
“The only way they will get that out is with a helicopter,” Raymond said.
The plane crashed nearly a mile deep into the woods in the area of Cunningham Pond Road on Sunday about 8:30 p.m. More than 70 first responders from several area towns were on scene. A line of nearly 60 firefighters passed Ralph and the passenger on stretchers from the wreckage and into two ambulances.
Raymond said the woman “did an excellent job” taking care of Ralph while waiting for help. When Warner firefighters found the crash site, the woman had laid out a blanket and was giving Ralph first aid.
“They were getting ready to spend the night if they didn’t hear from anyone,” Raymond said. “It’s not the White Mountains, but it can be treacherous at times.”
One of the Warner firefighters cleared a path to the site with a chainsaw. Raymond said the crash was up a steep hill, about 500 feet above the staging area.
The plane had broken into several pieces with one of its wings caught in a tree 30 feet above the ground.
“It’s the most amazing thing to see what they went through. I’m telling you,” Raymond said. “It’s impressive they’re alive. It really is.”
Dr. David Hirsch, Concord Hospital’s EMS medical director, hiked to the site with fire and rescue crews Sunday night, according to a Facebook post by the hospital. Hirsch provided an advanced trauma assessment, pain medication and accompanied Ralph by ambulance to the hospital.
The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating what caused the plane to crash.
(Nick Stoico can be reached at 369-3309, nstoico@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @NickStoico.)