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WEST JORDAN — A man suffered minor head injuries after the twin-engine plane he was piloting crashed into a field near an industrial building Thursday afternoon, knocking down power lines and causing a small grass fire.
Emergency crews responded to a report of a plane crash at an area near 8600 South and 4000 West shortly about 2:30 p.m., according to West Jordan Deputy Fire Chief Reed Scharman.
A 26-year-old man piloting the plane was able to exit the plane before emergency crews arrived. He was transported to Intermountain Medical Center with minor head injuries, Scharman said.
The injured man was the only individual on the plane and no other injuries were reported.
The crash caused a small grass fire, which Scharman said has since been contained.
In addition to the grass fire, the plane knocked down multiple power lines, which caused outages for hundreds of nearby residents. Rocky Mountain Power said about 405 homes lost power. Power was restored to most homes within three hours, and all customers had power restored by 9 p.m., according to Rocky Mountain Power's website.
A witness told KSL Newsradio he heard the sound of the plane before all the lights of the office he works in went out.
"I ran outside — all I see is flames across the street in the field," said the witness, named Merrick. "I ran, dialed 911 and got a fire extinguisher out of my car. ... I couldn't run across the street because there's power lines down hanging over the street and knocked down in the street."
Merrick said he saw wings of the plane knocked off, the plane's fuselage near a building wall and a man he believed was the pilot out of the plane leaning up against the wall.
The plane crashed in an area around many buildings and homes just south of South Valley Regional Airport.
“I don’t know the nature of what was wrong as he was going down, I don’t know to what extent he ended up here by choice or if this is just where he ended up,” Scharman said. “We don’t know if there was any skill involved or if it was all luck, but it is fortunate that he was able to get out of the plane on his own.”
Utah Department of Transportation officials added that 4000 West was closed in all directions from 9000 to 8400 South. Officials estimated the closures would be in effect until about 10 p.m.
The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation and Safety Board are investigating what caused the plane to crash, FAA spokesman Allen Kenitzer said.
More information will be added as soon as it is made available.
