CLARENCE, New York - A commuter plane crashed into a suburban Buffalo home and erupted in flames late Thursday, killing all 48 people aboard and one person on the ground, authorities said. Witnesses heard the twin turboprop aircraft sputtering before it went down in light snow and fog.
Flames silhouetted the shattered home after Continental Connection Flight 3407 plummeted into it around 10:20 p.m.
It was the first fatal crash of a commercial airliner in the United States since Aug. 27, 2006, when 49 people were killed after a Comair jetliner took off from a Lexington, Ky., runway that was too short.
"The whole sky was lit up orange," Bob Dworak, who lives less than a mile from the crash site, told The Associated Press. He said that residents of the neighborhood, about 10 miles from the Buffalo airport, were used to planes rumbling overhead, but he took note Thursday night when one sounded louder than usual and made some odd noises.
The 74-seat Q400 Bombardier aircraft was carrying 5,000 pounds of fuel and apparently exploded on impact, Erie County Executive Chris Collins said.
Firefighters got as close to the plane as they could, he said.
"They were shouting out to see if there were any survivors on the plane. Truly a very heroic effort, but there were no survivors," Collins said.
The aircraft, operated by Colgan Air, was flying from Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey to Buffalo Niagara International Airport in light snow, fog and 17 mph winds.
'There was a big bang'
"We were thinking it was just another plane," he said. "It kind of made some sputtering noises but they lower the landing gear over our house a lot so the noise from the planes a lot of time will change kind of drastically as they go over."
"All the sudden, there was a big bang, and the house shook," he said.
He drove over to take a look, and "all we were seeing was 50-to-100-foot flames and a pile of rubble on the ground. It looked like the house just got destroyed the instant it got hit," he said.
Amy Kudwa, a spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security in Washington said there was no indication terrorism was involved.
"All indications are that this was an air-safety event," she said.
Kudwa referred all other questions to the FAA.
ouston-based Continental Airlines issued a statement saying that preliminary information showed the plane carried 44 passengers and a crew of four.
"At this time, the full resources of Colgan Air's accident response team are being mobilized and will be devoted to cooperating with all authorities responding to the accident and to contacting family members and providing assistance to them," the statement said.
Continental extends its deepest sympathy to the family members and loved ones of those involved in this accident," said Larry Kellner, chairman and CEO of Continental Airlines, in a later statement. "Our thoughts and prayers are with all of the family members and loved ones of those involved in the flight 3407 tragedy."
Continental representatives were traveling to Buffalo to provide assistance to Colgan in its response to the accident. A family assistance center is being established in the area.
Clarence emergency control director Dave Bissonette said the crash also killed one person on the ground.
A mother and daughter who live on the street where the plane crashed were being treated at Millard Fillmore Suburban Hospital for what were described as non-life-threatening injuries, hospital spokesman Michael Hughes said. Two volunteer firefighters also were being treated for smoke inhalation and minor injuries.
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