KEENE, N.H. — A single-engine plane crashed into a New Hampshire building on Friday night, killing everyone on board the aircraft, authorities said.
Police and fire crews in the southeastern city of Keene responded to a report of an explosion and a fire at a building shortly before 7 p.m. EDT, WFXT-TV reported.
Officials with the Federal Aviation Administration said the Beechcraft Sierra aircraft crashed north of Keene Dillant-Hopkins Airport, according to the television station.
During a news conference late Friday, Keene police Capt. Steven Tenney said officials are working to determine how many people were on the plane, The Keene Sentinel reported.
“We haven’t found any survivors,” Tenney told reporters.
Tenney said the plane struck a multifamily building near the airport.
“It appears most of the accident was in a barn area, so no one in the residence was hurt at all,” Tenney told reporters.
Officials are investigating a deadly plane crash that happened in the city of Keene, N.H., Friday night. https://t.co/Wn7Q92Dij1
— Boston 25 News (@boston25) October 22, 2022
“It felt like I was standing by a bonfire, that’s how hot. I could already feel it,” Scott Gauthier, 44, of Keene, told WFXT.
Gauthier, who lives in the rear of the building on the second floor, said it was a multi-family residence that was home to 10 people, the Sentinel reported.
“It sounded like something fell, not like a full drop, but something fell and then the building shook,” Gauthier told the newspaper. “It sounded like something hit the parking lot in the back, and all I know is my mom went up to check and started screaming, ‘Get out of the house.’”
In a statement sent to the Sentinel via text message Friday night, Keene Mayor George Hansel thanked first responders and said there will be a follow-up investigation.
“I’m thankful for our first responders who were able to quickly get the situation under control,” Hansel said. “In the coming days and weeks, city staff will be working closely with the proper authorities to understand what happened.”
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash.
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