Clearwater Florida plane crash: Pilot, 2 others killed after plane hits mobile home park, explodes
CLEARWATER, Fla. - Three people are dead after a small plane crashed into a mobile home park in Clearwater on Thursday evening, officials said.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed a Beechcraft Bonanza V35 crashed into the Bayside Waters mobile home park, formerly known as Japanese Gardens, on U.S. 19 south of the Clearwater Mall at around 7 p.m. It said the pilot had reported an engine failure. FAA officials said one person on the plane and two people on the ground were killed.
The victims were later identified by the city of Clearwater as 86-year-old Martha Parry, 54-year-old Mary Ellen Pender and the pilot, 54-year-old Jemin Patel of Melbourne Beach.
Fire officials said a structure fire was reported in Bayside Estates, and simultaneously, crews were dispatched to a downed aircraft north of the airport for a report of an aircraft having an emergency.
Crews arrived to find multiple fires within the mobile home park. According to Fire Chief Scott Ehlers, four trailers in the mobile home park were heavily involved in the fire. Multiple mobile homes on Pagoda Drive within the park did catch fire after the crash, according to firefighters. Video sent in by witnesses shows a large fire engulfing a home in Clearwater.
The aircraft was found "predominantly in one structure," Chief Ehlers said.
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"I can confirm we have several fatalities, both from the aircraft and within the mobile home," he added.
Investigators with the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are at the scene.
This is a developing story. FOX 35 will update this story once more information becomes available.