Plane Crashes Into Hudson; All Passengers Rescued
A small, two-passenger plane crashed into the Hudson River yesterday near Yonkers. Police were able to rescue the two people aboard the plane, though the cause of the crash is still under investigation.
Officials have not released the names of those onboard the plane, but said they were a 39-year-old woman and 43-year-old man from New Jersey. The two were sight-seeing over the Hudson when some sort of mechanical failure occurred, causing the plane to plummet into the Hudson.
The passengers were both wearing life vests and were able to escape from the plane before it became completely submerged. FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen reported that the plane is now fully submerged in the Hudson, according to the Daily Mail.
The man and woman were rescued from the frigid waters within 30 minutes and taken to Jacobi Medical Center. They were treated for hypothermia and listed in stable condition, the Associated Press reported.
"Thank God we got there quick enough," Daniel Higgins Sr., an off-duty police officer who piloted a boat during the rescue told the ABC News. "It's what we do for a living, and I'm just glad we were in the right place at the right time."
The crash is reminiscent of the much-larger 2009 crash of flight 1549, which went down in the Hudson River as well. The plane struck a flock of geese, causing engine failure, and Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger was able to navigate a safe landing, avoiding any deaths.
Sullenberger was hailed as a hero for his efforts and gained national attention for the "miraculous" landing. Sullenberger had been flying for US Airways since 1980 and had served in the Air Force before that.
"He did a masterful job of landing the plane in the river and then making sure that everybody got out. He walked the plane twice after everybody else was off and tried to verify that there was nobody else onboard, and he made sure that there was nobody behind him," New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said at a press conference after the crash.
