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Update: Plane crash at Klenawicus, pilot airlifted for treatment

 

BEVERLEA WALZ PHOTO| The single engine Cessna not long after it crashed at Klenawicus Field about 6 p.m. Monday.
BEVERLEA WALZ PHOTO| The single engine Cessna not long after it crashed at Klenawicus Field about 6 p.m. Monday.

UPDATE: The Shelter Island Police Department has  identified the pilot of the single engine plane that crashed at Klenawicus Airstrip yesterday evening as Michael J. Russo, 80, of Shelter Island.

Mr. Russo was taken to University Hospital at Stony Brook by Suffolk County Police helicopter suffering chest and leg trauma, police said.

As of late last night, the hospital reported Mr. Russo in critical but stable condition.

Police reports said two civilians at the scene who heard the crash responded to the incident and took Mr. Russo from the wreck. Shelter Island Emergency Medical Services personnel treated Mr. Russo for injuries before he was flown to the hospital.

The Shelter Island Fire Department responded quickly to the emergency, drained the wrecked plane of aviation fuel and laid down foam, making the site safe, police said.

Below is the original Reporter story:

A small, single engine Cessna aircraft crashed at Klenawicus Field at about 6 p.m. Monday evening.

The pilot, the only person on board, was removed from the mangled aircraft and taken to a waiting Suffolk County Police Department helicopter to be medevacked to a facility for treatment at about 6:50 p.m.

BEVERLEA WALZ PHOTO | A Suffolk County Police helicopter flying in at right to transport the pilot of the crashed plane to a medical facility.
BEVERLEA WALZ PHOTO | A Suffolk County Police helicopter flying in at right to transport the pilot of the crashed plane to a medical facility.

The plane was resting near trees and thick brush off the airstrip on the western edge of the field with a completely wrecked front end and the engine exposed. One wing was badly damaged.

Details remain sketchy, but Rita Gates, who lives on Ginny Lane, said at the scene that she heard a plane taxiing for take off and then a loud sound.

“It was like a boom,” Ms. Gates said.

Farther down the field, Amanda Gutiw was making dinner at her home on Emerson Lane when she heard a “really loud sound,” she said as she stood in her backyard looking at the crash site. “It’s hard to describe,” Ms. Gutiw said.

Firefighters and other emergency personnel remained at the scene.

The numbers on the Cessna’s fuselage indicate it is registered to SMC Aviation, Inc. at Republic Airport in Farmingdale. SMC, according to its website, seems to be a full service aviation company.