Couple recovers in hospital after plane crash

  • A Concord fire truck sits in the staging area below the site of a plane crash in Warner on Sunday. Nick Stoico / Monitor staff

  • A plane crashed in the Mink Hills in Warner on Sunday night. The two victims are recovering in Concord Hospital. NICK STOICO / Monitor staff

  • A Concord ambulance leaves the staging area carrying one of the victims of a plane crash Sunday in Warner. The two victims are recovering from injuries that Warner fire Chief Ed Raymond said are not life threatening. NICK STOICO / Monitor staff

Monitor staff
Published: 5/29/2016 11:58:09 PM

By NICK STOICO

A man and a woman are recovering in Concord Hospital after their two-person plane crashed in the Mink Hills in Warner on Sunday night.

Warner fire Chief Ed Raymond said the couple suffered not life-threatening injuries. He added the couple are talking and are “in good spirits.”

“They are very, very lucky to have lived through something like that,” Raymond said.

Fire and rescue personnel responded to a call about 8:30 p.m. It took the pair about an hour to find a cell phone in the plane and call for help, Raymond said. With the help of GPS, firefighters were able to find the area of the crash and hear the couple’s yell back to them.

The plane crashed in the Harriman Chandler State Forest, about eight-tenths of a mile from where emergency responders could park their vehicles. It took 56 firefighters to safely relay the couple out of the woods and into ambulances. Raymond said the terrain was very rocky, and the crash site was about 500 feet uphill from the emergency vehicles.

“They’re extremely lucky, especially with the weather coming in right now,” Raymond said. “It’s getting pretty foggy up there.”

The plane crashed into heavy trees and broke into several pieces, Raymond said. One of the wings was caught in a tree about 30 feet above the ground, he said.

Raymond said the American Champion Aircraft was flying over Warner when the couple lost control while trying to turn around and fly back to Concord Municipal Airport. Their identities have not been released.

In all, between 65 and 70 firefighters responded to the call, Raymond said. Warner received support from several nearby departments, including Grafton, Sutton, Contoocook, Webster, Salisbury, Henniker, Hillsboro, Bradford and Concord.

“They did a great job,” Raymond said. “I couldn’t ask for a better team.”

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the crash.

 

(Nick Stoico can be reached at 369-3309, nstoico@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @NickStoico.)


Stay informed with our free email updates
Concord Monitor Daily Headlines
Concord Monitor Breaking News
Concord Monitor Dining & Entertainment
Concord Monitor Report For America Education
Concord Monitor Report For America Health
Concord Monitor Real Estate
Concord Monitor Sports
Concord Monitor Suncook Valley
Concord Monitor Contests & Promotions
Concord Monitor Weekly Most Popular
Concord Monitor Granite Geek
Concord Monitor Monitor Marquee
Concord Monitor Hopkinton
Concord Monitor Politics
Concord Monitor MY CONCORD
Concord Monitor Franklin
 


Concord Monitor Office

1 Monitor Drive
Concord,NH 03301
603-224-5301

 

© 2021 Concord Monitor
Terms & Conditions - Privacy Policy

Customer Service


Social Media

News

View All Sections

Part of the Newspapers of New England Family