FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. — Two people walked away with minor injuries after a plane they were in hit a semi-truck on Interstate 95 in Flagler County Monday.
>>> STREAM CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS LIVE <<<
For the first time since it happened, a witness to the crash is talking about what he saw that day.
“A shadow comes over the car, I look over…it’s the shadow of a wing,” Neal McDermott recalls.
McDermott says he was driving along I-95 when the plane crashed right in front of him.
“I look up the windshield…there’s the left tire of a small plane coming right over,” McDermott said. “I was like, ‘Oh my God, he’s gonna crash!’”
The #FCSO is assisting at the scene of a single-engine plane crash on I-95 north. The occupants sustained minor injuries and two lanes on 95 northbound will be re-opening shortly. #HappeningNOW https://t.co/743kr1hUCc
— FlaglerSheriff (@FlaglerSheriff) January 31, 2022
Investigators say the pilot of the single-engine Cessna 195 tried to land on the interstate after losing engine power.
“His right wing tipped the car carrier in front of us. He hit the car on the top which caused his left wing to hit the ground, and it just started obliterating with pieces flying everywhere in front of us,” McDermott said. “It was terrible.”
READ: State Sen. Bracy highlights new funding for Jewish community safety
McDermott says he pulled over to help, fearing the worst.
“I was just amazed that everyone was alive and no one on the road got hurt.”
Both the pilot and a passenger escaped the crash with only minor injuries.
“As I was helping him off that wing, he said the engine just quit,” McDermott said.
The National Transportation Safety Board has launched its own investigation into what went wrong.
READ: SeaWorld to build new emergency pools in response to a spike in manatee injuries
McDermott says he’s just grateful the outcome wasn’t worse.
“I was like, ‘it’s a miracle,’” McDermott said. “I think somebody was watching over all of us.”
Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
©2022 Cox Media Group
