Well, this definitely is not something you see or experience every day. This freakish accident is something nobody expected that day, but fortunately, one guy managed to record the entire thing with his dash cam.
What exactly happened is that a small single-engine plane shortly after departure from the runway lost control and crashed into some power lines and after that hit the support bar for a group of traffic lights causing a huge explosion after which two people suffered “minor injuries” and one of them had to go to the hospital, at least according to the local KOMO News. According to what the FAA announced the plane was a Piper PA32-260 Cherokee Six which somehow experienced the loss of control after takeoff from a nearby airport. They also stated that the pilot was unharmed and listed “unknown” regarding the injuries to passengers on board. The full investigation is of course underway, and detailed info will be available after it’s done.
KOMO News, on the other hand, reported that pilot said he started losing power after takeoff at about 500 feet and that he tried to land the plane on an empty spot on the road. Thanks to the dash-cam footage we see that his plan failed horribly, but at least there was no serious injuries or casualties. There was also a huge fire on the footage that is a product of a punctured gas tank after hitting the traffic signal support. Some of that gas fell on the vehicle underneath which also resulted in an instant combustion. It is just pure luck that something worse hasn’t happened.
Photos we have show the plane’s fuselage, which is remarkably mainly intact, but the damage to the rest of it is huge. Both wings are broken as well as the tail, and the entire situation caused a lot of discomfort to the local residents who due to the crash suffered a temporary power outage while the people on the road had to wait until the police, fire department and the FAA do their thing.
