Small Plane Crashes on Massachusetts Highway, Couple Killed
– Dartmouth: A small plane crashed directly into a major Massachusetts highway during rush hour Monday morning, killing both people on board and scattering burning debris across the interstate.
Miraculously, no drivers were seriously injured on Interstate 195, New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell said in a statement on Facebook. A woman who crashed her car was taken to the hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries, according to state police. Officials did not provide further details.
In videos taken by people in passing vehicles, black smoke could be seen rising from the sideways hull of I-195. Other debris was scattered across the grassy median and nearby woods.
The state Department of Transportation said the highway was closed in both directions near the crash site in the town of Dartmouth, about 50 miles south of Boston. It partially reopened Monday afternoon.
Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III said the deceased were pronounced dead at the scene. Quinn identified them as 68-year-old Thomas Perkins and his wife Agatha, 66, of Middletown, Rhode Island. The National Weather Service said the Northeast was lashing the region with rain and winds at 30 to 40 mph (48 to 64 kph) at the time of the crash.
Massachusetts State Police said the plane may have been trying to land at New Bedford Regional Airport. Officials said the pilot did not provide a flight plan to the airport.
The National Transportation Safety Board said the Socata TBM-700 took off from New Bedford airport and the agency is investigating the crash. The Federal Aviation Administration said in an email that it was unable to respond to media questions due to the government shutdown.
Mayor Mitchell expressed his condolences to the relatives of those who lost their lives in the accident and said he was grateful that the accident miraculously did not cause serious injuries to the drivers.
