SANTA ROSA COUNTY, Fla. (WEAR-TV) — A plane crash that sent one man to the hospital Tuesday is under investigation in Santa Rosa County.
Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s deputies said around 1 p.m. Tuesday a plane crashed into a sandbar on the Escambia River.
Authorities shared harrowing images with Channel 3 News, showing the aftermath of the crash.
In the photos, you can see a 172 Cessna upside down and broken into pieces.
“We came down here and together with the local area fire departments Jay, Munson, Berrydale and Allentown,” said Sergeant Rich Aloy with the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office.
Kevin Herrman lives in the area and told us he saw first responders rushing to the scene.
“We came down here and together with the local area fire departments Jay, Munson, Berrydale and Allentown,” said Sergeant Rich Aloy with the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office.
Kevin Herrman lives in the area and told us he saw first responders rushing to the scene.
“It was around lunchtime today. I saw emergency crews pulling boats, fire trucks going down towards the river, but we didn’t know what was going on or nothing like that,” said Herrman.
Deputies said because the plane crashed on a sandbar in a rural area, a Coast Guard helicopter was deployed to pick up the pilot.
We’re told he was the only one on the plane.
County officials said he was airlifted to an Escambia County hospital as a trauma alert.
“Due to the nature of where it is. It’s very remote. There’s not a lot of road access, actually there’s none. The river access would have been safer for the individual to be taken out by helicopter, so he doesn’t have to get moved around, put on a boat and possibly further the injuries,” said Sergeant Aloy.
Channel 3 News looked at the FAA database to find out who the plane is registered under.
Records show it is Freddie W. McCall, the former longtime mayor of Century.
Our sources said he was not aboard the plane and the pilot has not been identified yet.
“Our first responsibility is to make sure he’s okay, so we want to make sure we can protect his life and give first aid that we can possibly render. Once we do that, we secure the scene for investigators that come,” added Sergeant Aloy.
