| Fatal Plane Crash |
At approximately 5:05 PM on Tuesday afternoon, Maine Fire was dispatched to an Alert 3 Alpha at 156 Knapp Road.
An Alert 3 Alpha is the highest alert that Binghamton Regional Airport officials can issue, indicating that a
plane carrying a small number of passengers has crashed. An Alert 3 automatically tones out numerous departments,
both fire and EMS, including Maine Fire, East Maine, Choconut Center, Chenango, Castle Creek, Glen Aubrey, Engine
98, Maine Ambulance, and Union Ambulance. Crews arrived to find wreckage scattered over a small wooded area about
a quarter mile off Knapp Rd. Emergency personel hiked down the hill to the scene to extinguish numerous fires. The
pilot, and sole occupant of the Mooney M20K aircraft, was found dead minutes later. Investigations began and
carried on throughout the night as the cause of the crash is still unknown. The National Weather Service reported
poor visibility and heavy fog conditions at the time which may have played a role in the accident. All other
commercial air traffic was grounded after 5 PM due to the conditions. Our thoughts and prayers are with the pilot
and his family.
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