The National Transportation Safety Board is on scene investigating the cause of Monday’s deadly plane crash on Interstate 195 in Dartmouth, Massachusetts.
As a result of the investigation, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation said the high-speed lanes on I-195 east and west at the Exit 9 ramp will be closed, along with the Exit 19B ramp on I-195 west.
The closures are due to the ongoing crash investigation, and are expected to continue until 8 p.m. Drivers are being advised to seek alternate routes and avoid the area if possible.
Photos from the scene showed NTSB investigators examining the wreckage and a car damaged by portions of the plane in the median of I-195 on Tuesday morning.
NTSB officials investigate the fatal plane crash on I-195 in Dartmouth. (PETER PEREIRA/The Standard-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
NTSB officials document the damage to a vehicle involved in a fatal plane crash on I-195 in Dartmouth. (PETER PEREIRA/The Standard-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
Two people were killed when a small airplane crashed into the median of I-195 during Monday morning rush hour, scattering flaming debris across the interstate.
Miraculously, no motorists were seriously injured. A woman whose car was struck was taken to a hospital for the treatment of non-life-threatening injuries, according to state police. Officials did not provide more details.
In videos shot by people in passing vehicles, a torrent of black smoke could be seen billowing above I-195 from the plane’s fuselage, which was resting on its side. Other rubble was strewn across a grassy median and nearby forest.
The highway was closed in both directions near the crash site in Dartmouth, which is about 50 miles south of Boston, the state Department of Transportation said.
Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III said the people who died were pronounced dead at the scene. Quinn identified them as 68-year-old Thomas Perkins and his 66-year-old wife Agatha of Middletown, Rhode Island.
A nor’easter was whipping the area with rain and winds from 30 to 40 mph at the time of the crash, the National Weather Service said.
The Massachusetts State Police said the plane may have been attempting to land at New Bedford Regional Airport. Officials said the pilot didn’t appear to have provided the airport with a flight plan.
The NTSB said a Socata TBM-700 had departed from the New Bedford airport, and that the agency was investigating the crash. The Federal Aviation Administration said in an email that it could not respond to media inquiries due to the government shutdown.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Marc Fortier
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