Plane crashes into house on Davis Islands

Monday, May 21, 2007

Wreckage from the plane.

A small airplane crashed into a house just after noon Monday on Davis Islands in Tampa.

The pilot, 41-year-old Steve Huisman of Bradenton, died and the passenger, 25-year-old Sean Lander of Sarasota, was taken to Tampa General Hospital with serious burns on his body.

The incident happened on the 800 block of Severn Avenue. Cynthia Tate, who was alone in the home at the time, was not injured, but one of her dogs and one of her cats died, and her other dog is missing and presumed dead.

The twin-engine Kingair 90 had taken off from Sarasota and was trying to land at Peter O. Knight Airport when it skidded off the runway, through a fence, across a street, and into the house, causing the house to catch on fire.

"It landed," said Cynthia Tate's husband, Tom. "They couldn't stop. They came through the fence line and into the side of my house.

"My wife was home. She was in the front part of the house. She heard this commotion and then she heard the big bang when it hit the house and she got out."

The house experienced more than $200,000 in damage.

Tampa Fire Rescue officials spent the afternoon cleaning fuel that spilled during the accident and putting out the blaze. They're not sure what caused the crash, although some nearby residents think the weather played a role. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.