A plane crashed into a retirement village parking lot, bursting into flames and injuring five people.
Emergency personnel rushed to the residential neighbourhood in Manheim, Pennsylvania, to discover black smoke filling the skies.
The plane narrowly avoided colliding with buildings, but landed on top of cars, “severally” damaging five and setting some on fire, officials said.
Scott Little, the fire chief in Manheim Township, stated that all five aboard had been taken to the hospital but did not provide an update on their conditions.
No one on the ground was injured, and no buildings were damaged.
At 3:18pm on Sunday, a light aircraft crashed in the parking lot of Brethren Village Retirement Home, just off Lititz Pike.
The Beechcraft Bonanza had taken off from Lancaster Airport, less than a mile away.
According to audio from Air Traffic Control, the pilot informed the Lancaster Airport control tower that one of the doors was open, requiring him to “return for landing.”
ATC cleared the plane to return, but a few seconds later instructed the pilot to “pull up”.
Footage posted on social media shows a wreckage burning fiercely among parked cars, with sections of the metalwork disintegrating.
Nearby cars are also seen blazing, and the plane’s tail appears to be propped up on a vehicle.
Huge jets of water can be seen being shot into the flames by firefighters.
Brian Pipkin was driving nearby when he noticed the plane climb before abruptly turning to the left.
He stated, “And then it went down nose first. “There was an immediate fireball.”
Pipkin called 911 and then drove to the crash site, where he captured footage of the aftermath.
He went on to say, “A fire truck from the airport arrived within moments, and more first responders arrived shortly after.
“It was extremely smoky and hot. “They were really struggling to put out the fire.”
Manheim Township Police Chief Duane Fisher stated, “No one was injured on the ground, and the plane or aircraft did not strike any part of the structure.
“The fact that we have a plane crash in which everyone survives and no one on the ground is injured is wonderful.
“Anytime you have transport, you always have risk when people are moving, but having this type of ending so far is a great day for us.”
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro stated, “Our team at [Pennsylvania Police] is on the ground assisting local first responders following the small private plane crash near Lancaster Airport in Manheim Township.”
“All Commonwealth resources are available as the response continues, and more information will be provided as it becomes available.”
Manheim is located just south of Lancaster, in southeast Pennsylvania.
This comes just a month after another plane crash in the state, in which a medical jet crashed into a Philadelphia street, killing six.
All five onboard died, including a young girl who had recently undergone surgery and a pedestrian on the street.
The disaster struck only 30 seconds into the flight.
