I was taking my usual along-the-seafront walk early this afternoon when I came upon a surreal scene--a mashed-up small airplane sitting in the middle of Vinoy Park. Since the cops already had the scene taped off and there were people walking around inspecting the wreckage (FAA, I presumed), it looked as though the actual accident had happened a while before.
News reports say there were four people on the plane; two are at the hospital in "serious but stable" condition, and two were only lightly injured. Some news reports are listing the plane as a private flight from Tallahassee, with four Irish citizens aboard.
Reporters are saying the plane had been cleared to land at the Albert Whitted Airport, right next to The Pier at the St Pete waterfront, when it had an engine failure and tried to land in Vinoy Park, about 250 or so yards from the airport. From the way the plane looked, it appeared that the plane hit one of the trees in the park, tore off the left wing, and hit the ground nose-first.
Photos of the crashed plane below: