5 killed as plane crashes into homes

[big-daddy]

(CNN) -- Five people were killed Tuesday when a small plane crashed into two homes in Sanford, Florida, near Orlando.


Area resident Terry Boyd took this photo of the scene where a small plane crashed into two homes.

 At least one of those killed was a small child, Sanford Fire Chief Gerard Ransom told reporters. It's possible another one of the victims was also a child, Seminole County Fire Chief Leeanna Raw said.

Four people were injured, three of whom were critically burned, authorities said.

Officials said there were fatalities in both houses and among the people on board the plane. Earlier, officials had said those killed included the pilot and a passenger on the aircraft.

The twin-engine Cessna 310 was registered to Competitor Liaison Bureau.

State officials told WESH that Competitor Liaison Bureau is a company registered to Bill France Jr., the former head of NASCAR who died earlier this year.

NASCAR said on its Web site that it is looking into a connection to the plane and its pilot.

The plane had taken off from Daytona Beach and was headed to Lakeland, Florida, when it declared an emergency with smoke in the cockpit and attempted to land at Orlando-Sanford International Airport, said FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen.

Instead, the plane crashed about five miles from the airport in a neighborhood called The Preserve at Lake Monroe.

"First I heard a plane flying overhead. It sounded like a semi-truck coming down the road trying to slow down. As soon as it hit, it exploded into flames," a witness told CNN affiliate WESH 2 News.  Watch firefighters work in smoking rubble of homes »

The two homes that were hit were reduced to smoking rubble. Portions of their outside walls, blackened from the explosion and fire, remained standing.

"A boy jumped out of the second story. He was on fire and extinguished himself. The wife ran out of the front door. She was on fire. Someone was screaming about a baby still inside the house," a witness told WESH.

Terry Boyd, who lives two blocks from the crash site, told CNN he heard the plane overhead and then the explosion, which slightly shook his own house.

"There was a quick run of the plane and then you heard the big boom," said Boyd, who also provided CNN with pictures of the scene. "There was a lot of fuel in it because you kept hearing the booms over time."

Boyd, who only recently moved to the area, said neighbors were stunned, sitting on the ground and "shaking their heads in disbelief."

"People were gathering together, hugging each other. People were crying," he said.


The Orlando-Sanford International Airport control tower got a call at 8:35 a.m. about an Alert 1, which means an aircraft is in trouble, said airport spokeswoman Diane Cruz.

One minute later, the warning was raised to Alert 3, meaning a crash is imminent or occurring, Cruz said.

[Ida_Mann]

all over the news here in Orlando

Id@

[IXIswamperIXI]

man that sucks 

[big-daddy]

SANFORD, Fla. - A small plane carrying the husband of a NASCAR executive crashed into two houses while trying to make an emergency landing Tuesday, killing five people and starting fires that seriously burned three others, authorities said.

NASCAR confirmed that Dr. Bruce Kennedy, a Daytona Beach plastic surgeon and husband of International Speedway Corporation President Lesa France Kennedy, and NASCAR Aviation pilot Michael Klemm were among the dead.

The identities of the other victims on the ground were not immediately released.

Authorities said an adult and two children died in the homes that caught fire when the airplane crashed in the suburban Orlando neighborhood Tuesday morning.

Both of the homes were largely gutted by the flames, and smoke could be seen rising from the suburban Orlando neighborhood where the plane went down around 8:40 a.m.

Matt Minnetto, a fire investigator with Sanford Fire Department, said the plane itself was scattered in several pieces. At least three people were injured in one of the homes, including two adults and a boy about 10 years old who had burns over 80 to 90 percent of his body, Minnetto said.

“It was an extremely intense fire,” Minnetto said. The crash spilled aviation fuel, contributing to the fire’s spread.

Three of the victims killed in the crash and fire were believed to have been inside or near the homes, said Seminole County Fire Chief Leeanna Raw. She said three of the five people killed were adults. In one home, there were reports that a toddler might have been missing in the fire, Minnetto said.

A firefighter who responded to the blazes was also hurt.

Registered to ex-chairman of NASCAR
The twin engine Cessna 310 was registered to Competitor Liaison Bureau Inc. of Daytona Beach, said Kathleen Bergen with the Federal Aviation Administration.

Competitor Liaison is registered under the name of William C. France, the late chairman of NASCAR, according to online records from the Department of State Division of Corporations show. James C. France is listed as an officer of the company.

The plane was traveling from Daytona Beach to Lakeland when the pilot declared smoke in the cockpit. The pilot was attempting to land at the Orlando Sanford International Airport when the plane crashed about a mile or two north of the airport, Bergen said.

[big-daddy]

Dr. Bruce Kennedy, the husband of International Speedway Corp. official Lesa France Kennedy, was killed Tuesday morning in a plane crash in Sanford, Fla. that left at least five people dead and three others seriously burned.

The plane crashed into two houses trying to make an emergency landing.
An International Speedway Corp. official confirmed Kennedy's death to FOXSports.com.

According to a report on the Daytona News Journal Web site, which cited informed sources close to Daytona International Speedway and NASCAR, Kennedy was piloting the Cessna 310 when it went down about 8:50 a.m. ET, shortly after takeoff from Daytona International Speedway.

Statement from NASCAR
"This morning, at approximately 8:40 a.m. Eastern Time, a Cessna 310 registered to Competitor Liaison Bureau, Inc. of Daytona Beach, crashed in a Sanford, Florida, area neighborhood. At this time, we can confirm there were two people on-board, including the pilot, Dr. Bruce Kennedy and Michael Klemm, a senior captain with NASCAR Aviation. Both were killed in the crash.
"Dr. Kennedy was the husband of NASCAR Board Member and ISC President Lesa France Kennedy.

"It is clear that numerous families were affected by this terrible tragedy and unfortunately several people were deceased or seriously injured. Our deepest sympathies and prayers are with all of those who were involved in this tragic accident and their families. We will provide additional information as it becomes available."
 

At least two victims were on the plane, authorities said. A NASCAR spokesman in Charlotte, N.C., said the public relations staff was "in the information gathering stage" but he had no further details about how had been aboard.

Both of the homes were largely gutted by the flames, and smoke could be seen rising from the suburban Orlando neighborhood where the plane went down around 8:40 a.m.

Matt Minnetto, a fire investigator with Sanford Fire Department, said two people aboard the plane were confirmed dead in the crash and the plane itself was scattered in several pieces. At least three people were injured in one of the homes, including two adults and a boy about 10 years old who had burns over 80 to 90 percent of his body, Minnetto said.                       
 
"It was an extremely intense fire," Minnetto said. The crash spilled aviation fuel, contributing to the fire's spread.

Three of the victims killed in the crash and fire were believed to have been inside or near the homes, said Seminole County Fire Chief Leeanna Raw. She said three of the fire people killed were adults. In one home, there were reports that a toddler might have been missing in the fire, Minnetto said.

The newspaper spoke to at least four anonymous sources who said the Daytona Beach plastic surgeon was practicing for his pilot's license.

The plane was licensed to Competitor Liaison Bureau, Inc., with the late Bill France as the registered agent. Jim France, Bill France's brother, and Lesa France Kennedy and Brian France, Bill France's children, are listed as vice presidents.

Lesa France Kennedy is the president of International Speedway Corporation. She is also the VP/Assistant Treasurer of NASCAR.

[Bigscrb15]

Thats crazy. It sucks to see that happen. Also had a plane go down yesterday in Mulberry yesterday killing 2.

[caospop]

What a tragety. Exp. when there are small children involved... My prayers goes out to their families.

[eldiablo64]

another one today in orlando     and they say atv's are dangerous!!!