Two rescued from dangling plane caught in power lines

Nov 28, 2022

Two people, who spent nearly seven hours trapped 100ft (30 metres) above ground after their plane crashed into live power lines, have been rescued.

The incident happened at around 5.40pm on Sunday near Montgomery County Airpark in Gaithersburg, Maryland – leaving around 120,000 residents without power.

Rescuers managed to “electrically ground” the aircraft by around 11.30pm, Montgomery County Fire Chief Scott Goldstein said.

They then secured the aircraft to the pylons before the two men were safely brought down by 12.36am on Monday.

Both men suffered “serious injuries” from the crash, and hypothermia was also an issue, the fire chief said.

The men have been named by Maryland State Police as pilot Patrick Merkle, 65, of Washington DC and passenger Jan Williams, 66, of Louisiana.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said the cause of the crash was not immediately clear and a joint investigation with the National Transportation Safety Board is under way.

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Utility firm Pepco said around 120,000 customers were without power straight after the crash, but that by the time the men were rescued most had their supply restored.

Mr Goldstein said the next step was to remove the plane before the power lines could be restrung and reconnected.

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