2 killed when small plane crashes into Ohio car dealership

MARIETTA, Ohio (AP) — A small plane crashed into a car dealership parking lot near the border of Ohio and West Virginia early Tuesday, killing two people on board and sparking a large fire.

The crash of the 1974 Beechcraft Air King E90 in Marietta, Ohio, was reported about 7:15 a.m., according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol. The pilot and another person on board were killed. The crash damaged several vehicles at the dealership and sparked a fire that sent dark plumes of smoke spewing into the air, but no one on the ground was injured. It wasn’t known if anyone was in the dealership at the time of the crash.

The plane had apparently departed about 30 minutes earlier from John Glenn International Airport in Ohio, but it was not immediately clear where it was headed. The two victims — Eric S. Seevers, 45, of Parkersburg, West Virginia, and Timothy F. Gifford, 49, of Orient, Ohio — were the only people in the plane, authorities said, though they did not say which one was piloting the aircraft.

The cause of the crash has not yet been determined. The crash will be investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.

Marietta is along the Ohio River on the border between Ohio and West Virginia.

MARIETTA, Ohio (WTAP) - Authorities are responding to a plane crash in Marietta.

Not much is known about the flight at this time.

According to a Twitter post from the Ohio State Highway Patrol, the crash happened between Interstate 77 and Browns Road.

The crash happened near Pioneer Family Auto on Pike Street.

Bill Richardson, who is with the Mid-Ohio Valley Airport, says that the plane was a Beech E90 King Air. The plane was heading to the MOV Regional Airport.

Richardson says that the plane can hold up to six to 10 people. He says it is unknown how many people were on when the plane crashed. It is also unknown where the plane was coming from at this time.

Officials with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Marietta Police & Fire Departments, Reno Volunteer Fire Department, and Devola Volunteer Fire Department are among the agencies responding.

WTAP’s Alexa Griffey is on the scene and will have more information as it becomes available.

Be sure to follow her and the WTAP Television Facebook pages for those updates.

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