Plane Crashes in Oconee County, South Carolina (SC)

OCONEE COUNTY, SC- Wsoctv.com writes that a plane crashed into a lake in South Carolina this week. The two occupants of the aircraft were rescued by civilians in a boat.*

The plane came down into Lake Jocassee in the early afternoon, close to a dam. The water at that part of the lake is hundreds of feet deep. According to witnesses, the plane was attempting to take off when something went wrong, and it crashed into the water. People boating close to the crash site went to the scene and rescued the people in the plane. 

Intentional emergency water landings are referred to as “ditching.” While some planes are designed to land on water, pilots in distress will sometimes land on water in an attempt to reduce the impact and dangers of a crash. 

Commercial pilots rarely ditch, but small aircraft tend to do so slightly more often. According to the National Transportation Safety Board, ditching happens around twelve times a year. 

Ditching is apparently incredibly difficult for pilots. In 2009, a famous case of ditching involving a commercial plane landing in the Hudson captured national headlines. Despite the fact that no one died in that example, the chances of such a favorable outcome are not high. The plane that landed on the Hudson was able to get emergency crews to its location quickly, which also helped prevent the event from ending in tragedy. 

Typically, pilots choose to ditch only as a last resort, often because their engines failed. 

Once a plane lands or crashes into the water, the risks to the occupants are not over. Planes can begin to sink rapidly. It is important that everyone get off the aircraft as quickly as possible. 

Accident News is a safety and education initiative from Montlick & Associates, designed to help people better understand and thereby avoid common accident causes.  To learn more about our injury prevention programs, including iridesafe.com - click here. We hope you are never in an accident, but if you or a family member are injured, call Montlick & Associates 24/7 for your free consultation at 1-800-LAW-NEED (1-800-529-6333) or use our live chat at Montlick.com.

Sources:

https://www.wsoctv.com/news/local/boaters-rescue-2-after-plane-crash-lake-jocassee/Z6CE6LMFR5BPXCMZ6XHDSQF2JE/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_landing

https://www.businessinsider.com/why-its-hard-for-planes-land-on-water-2019-10#:~:text=And%20despite%20that%20success%2C%20landing,there%20is%20no%20better%20alternative.