Two people lost their lives on Thursday afternoon when a small aircraft plowed into a residential home in Akron, Ohio, triggering a massive blaze that left the structure in ruins.
Collision and Fireball
The incident occurred at approximately 3:45 p.m. in the 2200 block of Canterbury Circle. District Chief Sierjie Lash of the Akron Fire Department told WJW, 'We got a call that residents saw a plane going down into the house. We got more calls that people heard explosions, and we arrived to heavy smoke coming out of the house.' The plume of thick black smoke was visible for miles, according to the Akron Beacon Journal.
Multiple agencies responded, including the Federal Aviation Administration and the Ohio State Highway Patrol, which confirmed that both victims were discovered deceased inside the aircraft, as reported by WOIO.
Evacuations and Injuries
The home that was struck, along with the neighboring house, was evacuated. Fortunately, no one inside the homes sustained injuries.
Witnesses described the shocking scene. Next-door neighbor Michael Phillips recounted being at home with his family when the power flickered. 'The next thing we heard within five to eight seconds was a boom and then a big boom. We came outside, and the house was on fire.' Phillips quickly urged his wife and daughter to evacuate and saw his neighbor, Colton 'CJ' Laudato, who owns the house, fleeing with his children. 'CJ came flying out the front door with his kids. He walked over, I grabbed his kids and he went back in and got the dog.'
Debris and Damage
Photos and video from the scene show the house severely burnt, with the tail of the airplane protruding from the garage. One wing was seen on the ground between two houses. Jewell Ulrich, another neighbor, described hearing 'this humongous, loud thud. Instantly, all of us came running out. We saw that the airplane had hit the house. The fire was just instantly going... It was so hot. And then you could see the tail of the airplane sitting right there.'
Investigation Underway
The cause of the crash remains unclear. The 1963 Piper Cherokee single-engine plane had departed Akron Fulton Airport at 2:03 p.m., according to FlightAware data. The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident.
