OMEN
02-13-2009, 02:39 PM
A plane has crashed into a house outside Buffalo, New York, killing all 48 passengers and crew, plus one person on the ground.
An Erie County official said Continental Airlines flight 3407 crashed shortly after 3am Irish time.
The plane, a Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 operated by Virginia-based Colgan Air, was on a flight from Newark in New Jersey to Buffalo when it crashed in the Buffalo suburb of Clarence Center amid rain and sleet.
The Federal Aviation Administration said there were 44 passengers and four crew on the plane and it crashed 10km short of the airport.
'One structure has been seriously damaged and the aircraft is currently still burning - somewhat under control,' David Bissonette, emergency coordinator in Clarence Center told reporters.
State police spokeswoman Rebecca Gibbons told US media that there were 48 people on the plane and 'there were no survivors.'
A county official had earlier confirmed one fatality on the ground.
One county official said he was not aware of any reports of trouble from the plane.
'I was told the plane simply dropped off the radar screen,' the official said.
US media showed footage of the smoking wreckage in the centre of a residential neighbourhood.
RTE
An Erie County official said Continental Airlines flight 3407 crashed shortly after 3am Irish time.
The plane, a Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 operated by Virginia-based Colgan Air, was on a flight from Newark in New Jersey to Buffalo when it crashed in the Buffalo suburb of Clarence Center amid rain and sleet.
The Federal Aviation Administration said there were 44 passengers and four crew on the plane and it crashed 10km short of the airport.
'One structure has been seriously damaged and the aircraft is currently still burning - somewhat under control,' David Bissonette, emergency coordinator in Clarence Center told reporters.
State police spokeswoman Rebecca Gibbons told US media that there were 48 people on the plane and 'there were no survivors.'
A county official had earlier confirmed one fatality on the ground.
One county official said he was not aware of any reports of trouble from the plane.
'I was told the plane simply dropped off the radar screen,' the official said.
US media showed footage of the smoking wreckage in the centre of a residential neighbourhood.
RTE