ODESSA, Texas — A small plane crashed in a West Texas neighborhood on Tuesday, killing the pilot and a passenger and sparking a large fire on the ground that injured a woman, authorities said.
Witnesses said the plane struggled to gain altitude after taking off from an Odessa airport and then struck a power line before crashing into an alley around 7 a.m., authorities said. Both people on board the plane were killed.
“It is clear the pilot was trying to avoid the houses,” said Ector County Sheriff Mike Griffis.
The large fire on the ground was caused by a number of explosions after the plane crash, he said.
In addition to a few mobile homes, several outbuildings in backyards also caught fire, Odessa Fire Chief Jason Cotton said. The woman who was injured had to be rescued from one of the burning mobile homes and was taken to a hospital, he said. There was also damage to vehicles, fences and a restaurant in the city of about 114,000.
The Texas Department of Public Safety identified the pilot as Joseph Vincent Summa, 48, of the Houston suburb of Bellaire, and the passenger as Joleen Cavaretta Weatherly, 49, of Orange, east of Houston.
The Federal Aviation Administration said the plane was a Cessna Citation business jet. The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate.
