Hartford Fiery Plane Crash: 1 Dead, 1 Injured

Hartford CONN. – Authorities confirmed 1 dead and 1 wounded due to a plane crash on Main Street in East Hartford on Tuesday.

The Piper PA 34 twin engine hit a utility pole and crashed around 3:30pm. According to the police, the plane was carrying two men, a student pilot and an instructor. The instructor was rushed to St. Francis Hospital with serious burns and injuries while the student was presumed dead. Police did not announce the identity of the two victims.

East Hartford Police Lt. Josh Litwin said “As far as the occupants of the plane, he is expected to survive. He is cooperating with investigators he’s actually speaking with detectives as part of this investigation as ongoing,”

Two people from a nearby car were also brought to the hospital because they were traumatized from the crash. Police made it clear that the plane did not hit the car in any way.

The Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) said that the plane was owned by a local flight school and on final approach to Brainard Airport which is just across from the crash site.

The NTSB and FAA will have a joint investigation.

Meanwhile, due to the plane crash, Main Street was no longer passable between Willow Street Extension and Ensign Street until further notice. Drivers were advised to avoid the area.

The plane crash also caused power outages to around 500 people in the area. Eversource crews were working to reroute the power. The remaining number of outages, which will be isolated right by the vicinity of the crash and where the lines came down, will take longer to restore. According to them, they are still waiting for the investigators go-signal to start doing the repairs.

Following the incident, Pratt and Whitney’s officials released a statement:

“We are aware of the incident that occurred this afternoon on Main Street. Our thoughts are with the people affected. It does not appear at this time that any Pratt & Whitney employees or contractors were involved. Additionally, there is no impact to our operation here in East Hartford other than restricted traffic flow to the facility’s main entrance on Main Street. We stand ready to assist local officials as needed. Additional queries should be directed to the appropriate local officials.”

Officials from the United States Postal Service said no USPS employees or vehicles were affected. However, they believe a collection box where customers drop their outgoing mail may have been damaged.

Traffic along I-84 and Route 2 in East Hartford was affected because of the plane crash.

Part of Route 2 was shut down at one point, but it has since reopened. Exit 55 off Interstate 84 reopened as well as the westbound side of Route 2.

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