GEARHART, Ore. -- A small plane crashed into a house and exploded into flames in the small Oregon coastal town of Gearhart early Monday morning.
Paul Linnman, a radio host with KEX radio in Portland, is on vacation in Gearhart and heard the huge explosion. He went to the scene to figure out what had happened and the sheriff told him investigators believe five children and one adult were inside the home that was hit. But they had not yet been able to confirm that amid the chaos that followed the huge explosion.
Linnman was told that it appeared as though three people were taken to a local hospital and three others were possibly dead.
Linnman said one home was completely blown away in the explosion and a neighboring home was also severely damged. The sheriff told Linnman that the two homes had been rented by families from Portland and Denver.
Dawn Black, who lives nearby, told KGW she heard a noise that "sounded like a lawn mower puttering out" followed by a loud explosion. Then, when the plane crashed, "it felt like an earthquake." Her son, Drew ran outside and took photos of the fireball down the street and shared them with KGW.
Police in nearby Seaside said the crash happened shortly before 7 a.m. and emergency crews from three surrounding counties responded. The house was on fire when they arrived and it took about an hour to put out the flames.
Workers at a nearby golf course told KGW it knocked out their power. People living nearby said they heard a loud explosion and saw flames shooting into the sky.
The town of about 1,100 people has a mix of permanent and seasonal residents.
Clatsop County dispatchers told KGW the house is located near the intersection of Marion and 4th Avenues.
Republished with permission of KGW-TV.
