Only minor injuries in Fox Lake plane crash

FOX LAKE – A small, single-engine airplane crashed into a residential yard shortly after taking off from a privately owned airport at about 5 p.m. Sunday.

To the surprise of rescue workers, all three passengers in the plane appeared to suffer only minor injuries in the crash, said Larry Van Hoorelbeke, deputy chief of the Fox Lake Fire Department.

All three passengers might have been saved from more serious harm because of the rescue efforts of neighbors, who helped remove the passengers from the burning plane, a witness said.

Fox Lake firefighters responded to a report of a plane crash about 5 p.m. Sunday and arrived at 5:13 p.m. to 8742 Country Shire Lane in Fox Lake, Van Hoorelbeke said.

A small child and adult male passenger were treated for injuries at the scene, while a third passenger, an older man, was taken to Centegra Hospital – McHenry, as a precaution, Van Hoorelbeke said.

Van Hoorelbeke said he did not know the identities of the passengers. Fox Lake police did not immediately return calls seeking comment Sunday night.

The Cessna 1968-model single engine plane is registered to Samuel Hutchinson of Fennimore, Wis., according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Hutchinson could not be reached for comment.

John Meredith of Spring Grove witnessed the crash from his front yard. While talking with a friend in front of his home, Meredith said he watched the single-engine plane take off from nearby Richardson Field, a privately owned airport in Spring Grove. The plane lifted off the ground and turned left over some trees before appearing to experience engine trouble, Meredith said.

“I just heard it start stalling out and then heard it hitting trees,” he said.

Meredith drove to the crash scene and saw a man who lived in the home helping the elderly man from the plane. The resident had already helped the other man and child from the plane, Meredith said.

Meanwhile the plane’s engine was on fire, Meredith said. The man had brought out a fire extinguisher and hose to try to douse the flames, he said.

“I would say he saved their lives,” Meredith said.

Another neighbor who works as a paramedic also started treating the passengers before rescue workers arrives, Meredith said.

The plane crashed about a 100 feet from the house and no property was damaged in the crash, according to fire officials. Fox Lake police and an ambulance from Spring Grove also responded to the crash.