Small plane crashes onto Phoenix street, claims lives of 2 onboard

PHOENIX — Two people aboard a small plane died Monday after the aircraft crashed onto a street in northwest Phoenix, authorities said.

The single-engine, home-built aircraft went down at Seventh Street near Deer Valley Road and the Deer Valley Airport shortly before 7 a.m., close to the FBI’s Phoenix office.

The pilot, identified by a Phoenix Police spokeswoman as 54-year-old Theodore Rich, was transported to a trauma center, where he died in the afternoon.

The passenger, 49-year-old Elaine Carpenter, died at the scene.

There were no reports of anyone on the ground being hurt.

Firefighters and police were at the scene within minutes. A hazmat crew arrived later to deal with the fuel spill.

At least two cars were pulled over nearby. It was not clear if they had sustained any damage.

DEVELOPING STORY: Plane crashes near 7th Street/Deer Valley: https://t.co/a9yTn6O1PZ #abc15 pic.twitter.com/HiDCa0eHG5

— ABC15 Arizona (@abc15) August 20, 2018

Small plane down near 7th St & Deer Valley Rd in N Phx. 7th St. closed. The latest at 8 on @KTAR923 pic.twitter.com/u6xfMN1pVt

— Kathy Cline KTAR (@ClineKathleen) August 20, 2018

The Seventh Street and Deer Valley Road intersection was closed to traffic until around 1:45 p.m., when it reopened in all directions.

The plane was a single-engine Acroduster, Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor said. He had no immediate information about the plane’s flight plan.

Operations at Deer Valley Airport were not affected, according to Phoenix Aviation Department spokeswoman Heather Lissner.

The municipal airport has two runways, corporate-based aircraft, and two flight training schools.

Another home-built plane crashed in Arizona over the weekend. Two men died in the accident near Camp Verde. Crews on Sunday recovered the bodies of 68-year-old pilot Glenn Tenniswood and 78-year-old passenger Ron Walker.

The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were investigating both crashes.

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Kathy Cline and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

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