Pilot killed in Oakland Park plane crash

An 80-year-old pilot was killed after his airplane crashed into an Oakland Park home just before noon on Friday.

The pilot, tentatively identified as Cecil Alexander Murray, 80, had taken off from Ft. Lauderdale Executive Airport at 11:11 a.m. He reported mechanical problems to the air traffic control tower. The go-ahead was given for Murray to turn his Cessna model 421 twin-engine aircraft around and land back on the runway. The experienced pilot, for reasons under investigation at this time, was unable to make it back to the airport and crashed into a single-story house 1.3 miles short of the runway.

Several Oakland Park Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies were in the immediate vicinity and one in particular, Sgt. Michael Sabo, observed the crash and radioed in. Other deputies saw the plume of smoke and quickly arrived on the scene. They were kept back by the intense heat and flames consuming the aircraft and house. Deputies evacuated neighbors in the area to safety as Oakland Park Fire Rescue units arrived. A very fortunate homeowner, Oscar Nolasco, 53, and his two nephews, brothers Alex Martinez, 17, and Edwin Martinez, 21, were not home when the crash occurred.

It took firefighters about 20 minutes to bring the blaze under control. They were able to keep the flames from spreading to the adjacent homes. BSO deputies and Ft. Lauderdale police restricted traffic on North Andrews Ave. from Commercial Blvd. to Cypress Creek Rd. and throughout much of the neighborhood for the afternoon and evening to contain the scene and allow emergency vehicle access.

A unified command post was established and multiple agencies coordinated the operations at the site. As is standard in a fatality crash, BSO homicide detectives are handling the death investigation and the FAA and NTSB are conducting their investigation into the exact cause and circumstances of the crash.

Related posts:

1. Congress asking FAA to investigate FXE airport after Oakland Park plane crash
2. Teen killed in Oakland Park crash with Broward Sheriff’s Office deputy
3. Ft. Laud woman killed in motorcycle crash
4. Remains of four people found in plane crash
5. Two confirmed dead in plane crash-still unidentified

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Posted by admin on Apr 18 2009. Filed under Crime, Events. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry