Pilot/firefighter of crashing banner plane hits CO home he once owned – goes into firefighting mode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wp29cd4E4Qs
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UPDATE
As we suspected, the firefighter/pilot who was at the controls of a banner plane that crashed into a Northglenn, Colorado house yesterday (Monday) did not parachute from the plane. Initial news reports, including a statement reported to be from the FAA that NBCNews.com posted, made the parachute claim. All current stories say Brian Veatch climbed down out of the plane after it hit the home.
The home that was hit, according to the latest news reports, was once owned by Veatch, who is reported to have called 911, searched for victims and fought the fire with a green line.
The pilot who walked away from the airplane crash into a home on Monday with a few cuts and bruises once owned the home.
“The door was open and there was a man inside the house,” Chris Hoy said. “He was crouched down on the stairs. The whole top of the stairs was on fire.”
Nobody was home when the plane crashed. The pilot, Brian Veatch, is a firefighter for South Metro Fire and also works part time as a banner plane pilot.
Investigators say the plane was carrying an advertising banner for Geico and headed to Coors Field for the Rockies game.
The pilot was identified as Brian Veatch, an employee of Drag‘n’Fly Banners out of Larkspur, Colorado. He is also a veteran South Metro Fire firefighter.
Veatch owns a home in Northglenn about a mile from the crash site, according to public records. The records also indicate — and Veatch confirmed — that he owned the house where he crashed, although he said he didn’t realize it until someone asked him about it after the crash.
South Metro Fire said Veatch was able to lower himself from the cockpit of the wrecked plane into the second floor of the house where he was able to escape and call 911 about the crash.
EARLIER
(Note: Thanks to Eric Hurst at 5280fire.com for sending this along.)
A banner plane crashed into a Northglenn, Colorado home this afternoon (Monday) and caught fire. The pilot is an off-duty firefighter who, according to news reports, called 911, searched for victims and tried to fight the fire.
The crash happened before 4 p.m. at 11067 East Livingston Drive, authorities said. The pilot was able to walk away from the crash and call 911.
No one was home at the time of impact, North Metro Fire Rescue officials reported.
Neighbor Mike Papp said there was the sound of “buzzing and then a loud boom” when plane hit the house. The plane flies frequently in that area, towing a banner for Geico insurance, Papp said.
The pilot was flying for Drag’n’Fly Banners. The owner, Tom Mace, says the pilot is an engineer with South Metro Fire. Mace says when the plane crashed, the pilot went into firefighter mode. He got out and made sure there was no one in the home and then got a garden hose and tried to put out the fire.
Mace says the plane’s engine lost power. The company had just purchased the Piper PA-25 Pawnee and it had just had its annual inspection.
Witness Christopher Hoy told CBS4 he entered the home to see if anybody was there.
“I went up to the front door, there was a gentleman inside the house. I took about two steps inside and yelled if anybody was home. He said nobody was home,” Hoy said. “At that point I didn’t know that he was the pilot. He then identified himself that he was the pilot as he came out and grabbed the garden hose, was taking it back in trying to put the fire out.”
The pilot, who hasn’t been identified, was being taken to the hospital as a precaution when he said he felt fine and wanted to be taken to the police station so he could file a report.
