A small plane crash in the Texas Hill Country has killed all five people on board, officials have confirmed. The incident occurred late on Thursday evening in Wimberley, about 40 miles south-west of the state capital, Austin.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said the Cessna 421C crashed at around 11.25pm with a pilot and four passengers on board. The plane had taken off from Amarillo in north-west Texas approximately two hours earlier and was heading to New Braunfels national airport, near Austin, before it crashed in a wooded area close to its intended destination.
Witnesses described hearing a loud crash and feeling vibrations. “Everything was up in flames. It was crazy,” said Stacey Rohr, a local resident. Another witness, Cecil Keith, said he heard what sounded like an engine backfiring – “pow, pow, pow” – moments before the crash.
Hays County Judge Ruben Becerra confirmed the deaths on Facebook but said names would not be released until families had been notified. A second aircraft travelling in the area landed safely at New Braunfels airport. Air traffic control audio captured a pilot expressing concern after the Cessna began moving erratically and then disappeared from the radar scope. The controller subsequently called emergency services.
The National Weather Service reported partly cloudy conditions in the New Braunfels area shortly before the crash, with a thunderstorm arriving two hours later. Wimberley and New Braunfels are popular tourist destinations in the Texas Hill Country, known for their rolling hills and river activities.
