No injuries after small plane crashes in front of DeKalb retirement home
A small plane crashed down onto on N. Decatur Road in DeKalb County Thursday morning (FOX 5 Atlanta).
DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. - Pilot Brandon Roberts escaped with bumps and bruises, making it out of the mangled wreckage on his own, after crashing while attempting an emergency landing on busy North Decatur Road Thursday morning.
"A prayer and wishful thinking, doing what I could to keep myself safe without hurting anybody else," Roberts told FOX 5's Deidra Dukes.
Roberts says he ran into trouble within minutes of departing Dekalb's PDK airport.
"Departing PDK direct to PXE, I had engine failure on climb out so turned back."
GET BREAKING NEWS EMAIL ALERTS FROM FOX 5
He immediately began searching for somewhere to land.
"Just fly the plane 'til it doesn't fly anymore. Keep everybody else safe. Land it where there were no people," said Roberts.
"My first thought was it's flying too low, said eyewitness DeShawn Moore. " Right as I'm saying it, he clips the first powerline coming through the intersection."
Moore was at a nearby bus stop when the aircraft came flying past.
"You can see before he hits the powerline, he is trying to glide it cuz his propeller stopped. said Moore. After he hits the first powerline. He hits the second one next to the nursing home and he hit nose first."
A small plane crashed down onto on N. Decatur Road in DeKalb County Thursday morning (FOX 5 Atlanta).
Miraculously no one on the ground was hurt. The plane took down power lines, coming to rest at about 10 a.m. just feet from the Coventry Place senior living facility.
"This was the most desolate street without traffic. There was nowhere to land it on the street so I stalled it into the powerlines and let it come down as easy as it would without hurting anybody else," Roberts said.
DOWNLOAD THE FOX 5 ATLANTA APP FOR BREAKING NEWS AND WEATHER ALERTS
A small plane crashed down onto on N. Decatur Road in DeKalb County Thursday morning (FOX 5 Atlanta).
The National Safety Transportation Board said it has completed its review of the accident, which means that the plane's wreckage can now be removed from the area.