The small plane that crashed on Ocracoke before it reached the runway near beach Ramp 70.

Updated 4:49 p.m. Aug. 20, 2019

Text and photos provided by the National Park Service Cape Hatteras National Seashore

At around noon today (Monday, Aug. 19), a small, single-engine plane crash-landed approximately 30 yards from the runway at Cape Hatteras National Seashore’s Ocracoke Island Airport (W95). The pilot and one passenger walked away from the crash with “bumps and bruises,” EMS officials told the NPS.

 According to Federal Aviation Administration documents, the pilot was Allen W. Sawyer of Garner, Wake County, who is also listed as the manufacturer. The FAA document deemed the aircraft “experimental,” and departed Johnston Regional Airport (JNX) in Smithfield, Johnson County, for Ocracoke Island Monday morning.

The crash landing occurred around mid-runway on the land side (not beach side) of the runway, so it did not occur close to Ramp 70, the NPS said. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was immediately notified of the accident, but it is unknown if an investigation will occur.
The debris will be cleaned up by a contractor, the NPS said. 

National Park Service rangers, Ocracoke Volunteer Fire Department, Hyde County Sheriff’s Department and Hyde County Emergency Medical Services responded to the accident.

EMS assessed bruises and treated for minor scratches, nothing further.

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