Plane with sails plunges down in residential district of N.E., leaving pilot deceased.
A glider crashed in the residential area of Steinbach, Brand-Nagelberg, in the district of Gmünd, on Saturday afternoon, according to the Kronenzeitung's online report.
Emergency services, including firefighters, police, rescue services, and the bomb disposal unit, were dispatched to the scene. The pilot, a 63-year-old man from the Czech Republic, sustained fatal injuries in the crash.
The provincial police directorate NO confirmed the crash, with the alarm being raised at approximately 14:32. The glider is believed to have crashed into a road in the Steinbach area, home to around 250 residents.
Mayor Stefan Möslinger, who lives near the crash site, witnessed the incident. He described hearing a dull fluttering, reminiscent of a truck's canvas flapping in the wind, and seeing the plane circling before it crashed 250 meters from his home.
A 13-year-old was seriously injured when dragged 20 meters across the windshield but no other injuries or building damage have been reported. The only apparent material damage was a damaged garden fence.
The recovery of the plane poses a challenge for the emergency services due to the non-deployment of the rescue parachute's detonating capsule. As a result, the bomb disposal unit was called in to secure the area before the recovery process could begin.
The cause of the accident is still under investigation, and further details about the crash are yet to be released. The scene is currently being secured by explosives experts.
- The general-news headlines might include an article about the crash of a glider in Steinbach, Brand-Nagelberg, under the crime-and-justice section, as the incident required the intervention of various emergency services, including the bomb disposal unit.
- Despite the severe accident involving a glider and a minor incident of a 13-year-old being seriously injured, the sports section of the news remains untouched, as no sports-related events occurred during the same period.
