Small plane makes emergency landing in field adjacent to Miramar school
A small plane was forced to make an emergency landing in a field adjacent to a school in Miramar on Wednesday afternoon.
The small Piper Cherokee Archer II aircraft landed near Coconut Palms Elementary at 13601 Monarch Lakes Boulevard.
Two people were onboard.
While the aircraft sustained damage, there were no reported injuries, according to Miramar Police. They and the National Transporation Safety Board (NTSB) said preliminary information indicates the plane suffered engine failure.
According to flightradar24.com, the plane took off from Perry Airport around 12:38 p.m. and had four minutes of flight time before landing.
While the field is on school property, it has not been affected and is continuing normal operations. Police said traffic in the area has also not been affected. Miramar Police Chief Delrish Moss said it was a "miracle."
"The plane with a pilot and a student reported somewhere along the flight that there was some sort of problem with the engine and they landed safely in the school playground," he said.
Moss said because the plane clipped the fence, it changed its path and avoided hitting any part of the school.
"I think had the trajectory changed this could have been catastrophic," he added.
Parent Adrienne Lester told CBS News Miami that she was shocked and in disbelief about the incident.
"It didn't seem real," she said.
Other family members of students told CBS News Miami they were alarmed by it.
"Scary," said Jennifer. "My nephew is in school right now."
"I can't believe that," added Mariela. "What was going on with someone driving the plane? What happened?"
Lester was especially concerned because the incident happened near a playground.
"My concern is how do you protect the kids from that?" she said.
Luz Mary Campo, another parent, said the entire situation was confusing.
"I don't why it landed here but I am glad everyone is fine," she said.
In a statement, the F.A.A. said it hoped to release a preliminary report by Thursday.
Miramar Police detectives are on the scene, and all external agencies, including the FAA, are handling the investigation. At this time, the NTSB does not have a definitive cause of the incident.
