Three 911 calls released Monday highlighted the panic that bystanders experienced when a small plane crash-landed on a Florida beach Sunday, killing a beach-goer and seriously injuring his daughter. The first call to police came from an official at Venice Airport, reporting that a pilot had informed the airport he would not make it for unspecified reasons and would land a mile south, on Caspersen Beach. The second released call was from a bystander who informed police that a plane crashed on the shoreline. "It hit the water and kind of rolled up on the sand," the caller said. "It didn’t look that bad."
The third caller is breathless and frantic. "The plane came down and hit my friend's husband and daughter," the caller said. She said the male victim was bleeding but conscious, and the young female victim was not bleeding but unconscious. The father, who died from his injuries, has been identified as Ommy Irizarry, 36, a U.S. Army sergeant, according to the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office. His daughter, 9-year-old Oceana Irizarry, was still in critical condition on Monday. The pilot and his single passenger were unharmed. The incident is considered non-criminal, and is under investigation, according to police.
IN-DEPTH
Airplane Crashes on Florida Beach, Killing One
SOCIAL
— Elisha Fieldstadt
