An airplane was compelled to perform an emergency landing on a highway before erupting into flames in front of astonished drivers.
A four-seater Diamond DA-40 light aircraft slammed into Interstate 26 in Asheville, near Asheville airport, North Carolina, at around 8.15pm on Thursday evening, December 14.
The two people onboard, who have not yet been publicly identified, were taken to a local hospital, according to the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office.
The plane allegedly reported problems and sought assistance before it hit the ground, an airport spokesman told a local news outlet. It is currently unclear what caused the emergency landing and why the plane burst into flames.
A fleet of fire trucks, police cars and highway patrol vehicles rushed to the scene as they closed off the westbound lanes of the I-26. Officials predicted that the road would reopen on Friday morning, local time.
“There does not appear to be any life-threatening injuries,” Allen Morgan, a Buncombe County EMD supervisor, told Citizen Times. There condition, however, is currently unknown at this time.
Traffic continued to build up, and by 11.10pm, it was at a complete standstill, one person at the scene wrote.
“We may be spending the night out here in this zipper traffic jam. Officials attempting to turn around the entire lane,” they said on Facebook.
“Best stay away from that area for sure… Prayers for everyone involved in this,” a second added.
Other local residents said that they experienced power outages at the time of the horror crash.