FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. --
A small plane crashed on the southbound lanes of Interstate 95 between Commercial Boulevard and Cypress Creek Road creating traffic back ups on the busy interstate for miles.
Southbound traffic moved slowly as firefighters and rescuers work to clear the scene.
The plane came to rest on the west shoulder of the interstate.
According to a Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman, the twin-engine Beechcraft took off from nearby Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport around 1:30 p.m. when the pilot, Robert Robertson, failed to gain altitude and called in a mayday.
Local 10 reported the plane was fully loaded with fuel and headed to the Bahamas. Investigators are just beginning to figure out what happened, but early reports are that the plane clipped the top northeast side of a building, then barely made it over railroad tracks before skidding to a stop and avoiding going completely into lanes of traffic on I-95.
Robertson was the only one on board the plane. He is in critical condition at Broward General Medical Center.
Drivers Describe Chaotic Scene
Drivers described a surreal scene as the airplane crashed on the shoulder of the interstate. Witnesses told Local 10 that the plane came in at a sharp angle, clipped a building and "dropped like a rock" a few yards from the southbound lanes.
"Before we even passed him he went down, started rolling, hit a sign and then stopped, so we pulled over and he was slumped over. We thought he was dead," said Charles Jules, who was driving south on the interstate. Another driver, Madeline Jones, was amazed nobody crashed their car. "All the cars started swerving around trying to avoid each other and I just saw (the plane) flip over and hit the ground. It's amazing he didn't hit us," she said.
Records show that the plane is owned by Monarch Air Group. The company's chief mechanic, David Cavanaugh was at the scene and told Local 10's Roger Lohse that it's a vintage 1960s model aircraft that was modified to carry cargo.
"It's been a good airplane. We haven't had a major maintenance issue with it at all," said Cavanaugh.
He also told Lohse that Robertson was an excellent flier who has been with the company for several years.
